Japan should push China harder on human rights, adviser to PM says

Gen Nakatani says ‘it’s important that universal values are protected in China, so I want to press China on this even harder than in the past’

A parliamentary resolution this week expressed concern about Xinjiang, Tibet, Inner Mongolia and Hong Kong and called on the government to probe alleged abuses

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Gen Nakatani, special adviser on human rights issues, has backed a path that could increase tensions between Tokyo and Beijing. Photo: AFP

Published: 3:40pm, 3 Feb 2022

Japan should do more to pressure China on human rights, an adviser to Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said in a rare interview, backing a path that could increase tensions between Asia’s biggest economies.

Gen Nakatani, appointed to a new human rights position created last year, said he wanted to push China harder on the issue following a parliamentary resolution this week that called on the government to probe alleged abuses.

The former defence minister had previously worked on human rights with a group of legislators from ruling and opposition parties. Long reluctant to criticise other countries in public over human rights, Japan changed course following Beijing’s clampdown on Hong Kong in 2020, a move that chilled already difficult bilateral relations – and led to the new post Nakatani now holds.

The resolution “makes demands of the government in very strong terms”, Nakatani said in an interview with Bloomberg two days ahead of the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony on Friday. “I believe it’s important that universal values are protected in China, so I want to press China on this even harder than in the past.”

China reacted angrily to the resolution, calling it “vile” and blasting Japan’s “deplorable track record in human rights”. The Japan measure expressed concern about human rights in Xinjiang, as well as Tibet, Inner Mongolia and Hong Kong.

Uygurs and other members of the faithful pray at a mosque in Kashgar, Xinjiang. The Japanese parliamentary resolution expressed concern about human rights in the far western region, as well as in Tibet, Inner Mongolia and Hong Kong. Photo: AP

Lawmakers from Japan’s ruling and opposition parties backed the motion, although some complained the wording was not strong enough. The resolution urges the Japanese government to gather information about the allegations of abuse and to work with other countries to form a plan to help those affected.

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