Request to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to Follow Up on the Suppression of Uyghurs in China

Uyghur rights activists and human rights groups on Friday, June 21, urged the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to follow up on the agency's report regarding the suppression of Uyghurs and other Muslims residing in Xinjiang province, China, and to take further actions in this regard. These organizations, including the World Uyghur Congress and Amnesty International, claim that Volker Turk, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, has not followed up on the agency's 2022 report that accused China of committing crimes against humanity. Mr. Turk, after his appointment as the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in October 2022, confirmed this report and promised to contact the Chinese government regarding its findings. Liz Throssell, spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, stated on Friday: "As the High Commissioner has clearly stated, he supports this agency's 2022 report, and we are in contact with the Chinese government regarding human rights issues, including following up on this report." A Muslim Uyghur who was handed over to China by the Islamic Republic was sentenced to 15 years in prison. The 2022 report, prepared during the presidency of Michelle Bachelet, the former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, concluded that the scale of arbitrary and discriminatory detentions of the Uyghur minority and other Muslims residing in Xinjiang province in western China may constitute international crimes. The Chinese government has consistently denied these allegations and on Friday defended its policies and actions in Xinjiang, rejecting the statement of defenders of minority rights residing in the province that was submitted to the Human Rights Council office in Geneva. Just before the start of Volker Turk's term as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the US, UK, and several other Western countries called for an examination of the report regarding the persecution of minorities in Xinjiang at the Human Rights Council meeting. However, due to opposition votes from non-Western countries, this report was not placed on the agenda, which was considered a diplomatic victory for Beijing. A spokesperson for the World Uyghur Congress stated on Thursday: "To date, no effective action has been taken in this regard. We have come here to remind everyone that immunity from committing crimes is not a solution." Human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, have translated and published the 2022 report of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights into five languages. They have called on Volker Turk to inform about the actions of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Chinese government's response to the findings and recommendations of this report. A representative from the Chinese mission to the UN in Geneva stated at the Human Rights Council meeting: "A small number of NGOs and Western powers do not hesitate to lie and spread rumors to discredit China, undermine its development and progress, and serve separatist conspiracies." Several countries, including the US and Australia, have also expressed concern over the lack of follow-up on the 2022 report, but they did not present specific recommendations or requests regarding actions that the High Commissioner for Human Rights should take in this regard.