UN human rights chief to visit Xinjiang where crimes against Uyghurs carried out
March 8, 2022, 5:45 pm

UN human rights chief to visit Xinjiang where crimes against Uyghurs carried out

Uyghur Muslims-China/Pixabay

The Arab News reported, citing the associated Press, the UN human rights chief said Tuesday that her office and China’s government have reached an agreement for her to visit in May the western region of Xinjiang.

Xinjiang is where human rights groups and Western governments have alleged that genocide and other crimes are being carried out against the predominantly Muslim minority group known as Uyghurs.

Michelle Bachelet, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, told the Human Rights Council by video message that she was pleased to announce the visit and that concrete preparations have begun.

She said the Chinese government has also accepted the visit of an advance team from her office next month “to prepare my stay in China, including on-site visits to Xinjiang and other places.”

Bachelet has talked about hoping to visit Xinjiang nearly since she took office in 2018. Her office has also been compiling a long-awaited -– and much-delayed -– report into alleged human rights abuses in the region.

Michelle Bachelet, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (File photo: United Nationa Human Rights official Facebook page)

Separately, Human Rights Watch said a total of 195 human rights groups in an open letter released Tuesday are calling on Bachelet to “urgently” release the report on “Chinese government rights violations targeting Uyghurs and other Turkic communities.”

Diplomats in Geneva have said the report has been ready — or very close to it — for months. Speaking to the rights council on Thursday, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock called on Bachelet’s office to release the report.

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Human rights groups and others have focused much of their criticism on what they call detention centers set up by the Chinese government for Uyghurs and others in the region.

Beijing says the sites are vocational training centers aimed at helping improve economic fortunes and counteract bouts of extremist violence in Xinjiang.

Unofficial UK panel says China committed genocide against Uyghurs

“Human rights groups have become increasingly concerned that the UN human rights office has still not published its long-awaited report on Xinjiang, even as the atrocity crimes pile up,” said Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch.

Source: arabnews

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Upon arriving to participate in the summit of the European Political Community, which includes around forty heads of state in Budapest, he said, "I look forward to sitting with the elected U.S. president and seeing how we will collectively ensure we meet challenges, including the threats from Russia and North Korea." He also noted that the strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea poses a threat to the United States as well, according to reports from Agence France-Presse.

Before Trump's victory, Rutte expressed confidence that a united Washington would remain part of the defensive alliance, even if Trump became the 47th president of the United States. In an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF last Monday night, he stated that both Republicans and Democrats understand that NATO serves not only the security of Europe but also that of America. He added that both candidates are aware that the security of the United States is closely tied to NATO.

On Wednesday, NATO congratulated Trump on his victory but did not address the Ukrainian issue.

It is noteworthy that the relationship between the elected U.S. president and the defense alliance was not the best during his first term in the White House. Trump criticized NATO member states multiple times and even hinted at withdrawing from the alliance unless they increased their financial contributions.

Additionally, the issue of the Russian-Ukrainian war is one of the matters that complicate relations between the two sides, especially since Trump has repeatedly stated that he can end this ongoing conflict, which began in 2022, quickly. He implied that he had a peace plan between Kyiv and Moscow, while his vice president, JD Vance, revealed aspects of that plan, which stipulated Ukraine's commitment not to join NATO, thereby sending reassuring signals to the Russians.

Furthermore, many NATO member states in Europe fear that Trump might halt military aid to Ukraine after he previously criticized the U.S. for pouring funds into supporting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.