It further said that the government should use every opportunity it has at the UN organs, summits and treaty bodies to call for the immediate disbandment of the camps…reports Asian Lite News.
A group of British lawmakers have urged the Boris Johnson government to take tough action against China over its treatment of the Uyghur community in Xinjiang province.
The cross-party committee, led by Conservative leader Tom Tugendhat, said in a report that the atrocities being committed in Xinjiang to represent an international crisis of profound urgency, making it unconscionable for any civilised government to look the other way.
“The evidence of severe human rights abuses and crimes against the Uyghur people is already overwhelming and indisputable, and Parliament has called it genocide,” Tugendhat said.
The report by UK Parliament Foreign Affairs Committee has called on the UK government to explore a ban on the import of all cotton products known to be produced in whole or in part in Xinjiang.
In their 37-page report – Never Again: The UK’s Responsibility to Act on Atrocities in Xinjiang and Beyond – the British MPs said the UK Government should ensure that the Chinese government faces consequences at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics for its crimes in Xinjiang.
The report called on the UK government to increase pressure on the Chinese government to allow international observers access to Xinjiang, especially the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. “As an alternative, the Committee recommends a UN investigation taking place from outside of China,” the report said.
It further said that the government should use every opportunity it has at the UN organs, summits and treaty bodies to call for the immediate disbandment of the camps.
Furthermore, the report urges the government to engage in dialogue with the International Criminal Court about the feasibility of an investigation into crimes committed against the Uyghurs in Xinjiang and beyond.
Despite mounting evidence, Beijing continues to deny the grave human rights violation in Xinjiang.
Two days ago, members of the Uyghurs and the Tibetan communities protested outside the Chinese embassy in London to commemorate the 12th anniversary of the Urumqi massacre.
On July 5, 2009, violent riots broke out in Urumqi, the capital city of Xinjiang. The Chinese government launched a crackdown against Uyghurs protesting against the killing of two Uyghurs. Thousands of protestors were killed, disappeared or injured.
According to officials, a total of 197 people died, with 1,721 suffered injuries in the riot.
Uyghur-run mosques were temporarily closed. By November 2009, over 400 individuals faced criminal charges for their actions during the riots. Nine were executed in November 2009, and by February 2010, at least 26 had received death sentences.
Reports from non-governmental organisations based on interviews with eyewitnesses indicated that security forces deliberately used live ammunition during the protest.
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