US sanctions 15 individuals, 10 entities for human rights abuse

By Ovunc Kutlu

ANKARA (AA) - US Treasury Department on Friday imposed sanctions on 15 individuals and 10 entities for their alleged roles in human rights abuse and repression in four countries.

Those countries are China, Bangladesh, Myanmar and North Korea, officially known as the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. The sanctions come on International Human Rights Day.

The Treasury Department also said it is imposing investment restrictions on a company in connection with the surveillance technology sector of the Chinese economy, saying the human rights abuse was enabled by "the malign use" of technology.

The Chinese company called SenseTime has developed facial recognition programs that can determine a target’s ethnicity, with a particular focus on identifying ethnic Uyghurs, it said in a statement.

"Technology is a key tool used to advance the exercise of freedom of expression and the protection of other human rights globally. However, authoritarian states misuse technology to facilitate human rights abuse and repression, target members of racial and ethnic minority groups, manipulate information, and spread disinformation," said the statement.