EU lawmakers condemn ‘brutal repression’ of Uyghurs, Turkic minorities

By Agnes Szucs

BRUSSELS (AA) - The European Parliament on Thursday condemned the “brutal and arbitrary repression” of Uyghurs and other Turkic people in China’s Xinjiang region, and called on Beijing to release those detained.

In a resolution adopted by show of hands, EU lawmakers condemned “in the strongest possible terms the fact that the Uyghur community in the People’s Republic of China has been systematically oppressed by brutal measures.”

They urged China to stop “arbitrary detention without charge, trial or conviction for criminal offenses targeted against Uyghurs and other ethnic Turkic people.”

Pointing out that these acts amount to crimes “against humanity and represent a serious risk of genocide,” the European Parliament also called on China “to cease all government-sponsored programs of forced labor and mass forced sterilization” of these minorities and to reunite “forcibly” separated children with their families.

The EU lawmakers demanded EU countries impose sanctions on high-ranking Chinese officials, who are “involved in the systematic human rights violations in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.”

They also called on the European Commission to propose an import ban on all products produced by forced labor.

According to the European Parliament and various human rights groups, China has been “pursuing the mass detention of Uyghurs, Kazakhs and other predominantly Muslim ethnic groups in Xinjiang” since 2017.

Beijing has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and rejected the accusations, calling the allegations “lies and political virus.”