海角大神

The United Nations human rights office took a forceful stand this week against China鈥檚 efforts to reshape the global rights agenda, experts say, by releasing a report that finds Beijing has seriously violated the rights of ethnic minorities in the Xinjiang region, including possible crimes against humanity.

The report by the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) found 鈥渓arge-scale arbitrary deprivation of liberty of members of the Uyghur and other predominantly Muslim communities鈥� and 鈥渃redible鈥� allegations of patterns of torture of detainees confined in government facilities.

The long-awaited OHCHR assessment on Xinjiang was released Wednesday despite intense efforts by China, a powerful U.N. member, to suppress it.

China has in recent years increasingly advanced its own, state-centric rights model that prioritizes security, economic development, and a strong, sovereign state. Instead, the call by the world鈥檚 leading human rights authority for China to comply with international rights law represents a staunch defense of聽universal principles focused on protecting individual rights.

Beijing 鈥渨ants to push other nations to adopt a different framing of human rights, one that would align with their values. And this report pushes back against that in a pretty strong way,鈥� says Darren Byler, assistant professor of international studies at Simon Fraser University, who has conducted extensive research on China鈥檚 treatment of the Uyghur population.

The U.N. statement offers other countries 鈥渟ome clarity and ... an authoritative source to turn to鈥� in taking a position on Xinjiang, he says.

Researchers, scholars, and activists focused on Xinjiang, as well as former detainees and the Uyghur diaspora, welcomed the report for corroborating their years of work to expose the human rights violations. For many victims, it marks the first step toward justice.

鈥淲e waited so long for the truth to be recognized,鈥� says Rushan Abbas, a Uyghur American activist who鈥檚 been outspoken about her own relatives鈥� disappearances in Xinjiang.聽

Ms. Abbas, the founder and executive director of the Washington-based Campaign for Uyghurs, says she hopes the report will lead to concrete actions not only by the U.N., but聽also聽by countries that so far have remained silent on Xinjiang, including Muslim-majority nations.

China in tight spot

Amid rising geopolitical tensions in the world, the U.N. report highlights shared humanitarian values, experts say.

鈥淭his issue has become a geopolitical issue, which is very unfortunate because it鈥檚 a global humanitarian issue,鈥� says Sean Roberts, associate professor at George Washington University鈥檚 Elliott School of International Affairs.

鈥淚t was extremely important to see a U.N. body provide this report,鈥� he says, 鈥渂ecause the Chinese government鈥檚 primary rebuttal to accusations about the policies towards Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims has been that it is the product of disinformation from the U.S. and European governments who have an ax to grind with the Chinese government.鈥�

Indeed, Beijing immediately denounced the report as the product of political manipulation by 鈥渁nti-China forces,鈥� saying it has 鈥渮ero credibility.鈥�

鈥淭his so-called assessment is orchestrated and produced by the U.S. and some Western forces and is completely illegal, null, and void,鈥� Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a Beijing press conference Thursday. 鈥淚t is a patchwork of disinformation that serves as a political tool for some Western forces to strategically use Xinjiang to contain China.鈥�

Still, the U.N. report raises challenges for China diplomatically, experts say. As it grows in wealth and power, China has worked hard to raise its stature, influence, and participation at the U.N.聽

In May, it hailed the first visit by the U.N. high commissioner for human rights to China in 17 years. On a six-day trip, High Commissioner Michelle Bachelet met with Chinese leader Xi Jinping and traveled to the western region of Xinjiang, where Chinese officials said she was able to 鈥渙bserve and experience first-hand the real Xinjiang,鈥� according to a report by the state-run Global Times newspaper.

At the time, official media praised Ms. Bachelet for 鈥渉onestly and objectively鈥� relating her experiences in Xinjiang and China. Yet this week, Beijing said the Xinjiang report overseen by Ms. Bachelet shows the OHCHR is a vehicle for disinformation. 鈥淭he OHCHR has been reduced to an enforcer and accomplice of the U.S. and some Western forces in forcing the developing countries to fall into line with them,鈥� said Mr. Wang.

What the report says聽

China鈥檚 ruling Communist Party since 2016 has intensified a 鈥渟trike hard operation鈥� against what it considers terrorism, religious extremism, and separatist tendencies among Uyghurs and other predominantly Muslim, Turkic-speaking ethnic groups in Xinjiang, a strategic frontier with Central Asia. Sporadic violence has erupted between Uyghurs and ethnic Han Chinese in the northwest territory, and some Uyghurs want greater autonomy or even independence from Beijing. But experts view the root cause of unrest as China鈥檚 decades of repression and discriminatory treatment of Uyghurs 鈥� a perspective supported by the U.N.鈥檚 report.

Based on extensive research, including interviews with dozens of people who were held in or worked in the camps since 2016, the U.N. found that the government鈥檚 counterterrorism and counter-extremism strategies in Xinjiang 鈥渓ed to interlocking patterns of severe and undue restrictions on a wide range of human rights,鈥� imposed in a discriminatory manner on Uyghurs and other predominantly Muslim communities.聽

Researchers have estimated that as many as a million of the total Uyghur population of 11 million have been confined in what the government described as 鈥渧ocational education and training centers鈥� (VETCs) for education and rehabilitation.聽

While not using the words 鈥済enocide鈥� or 鈥渞isk of genocide鈥� 鈥� applied to China鈥檚 actions in Xinjiang by countries including the United States, Canada, and the Netherlands, as well as by the European Parliament 鈥� the report finds credible allegations of forced medical treatment and 鈥渋ndividual incidents of sexual and gender-based violence.鈥� The detention facilities 鈥減rovide fertile ground for such violations to take place on a broad scale,鈥� it states.

鈥淭his report from the U.N. offers a lot of validation to the former detainees and their family members. It took a lot of courage for [victims] to speak to this body, knowing they could be exposed,鈥� says Dr. Byler, the Simon Fraser University professor.

Already, he and other experts say that the international scrutiny of China鈥檚 crackdown on Muslims in Xinjiang appears to have led Beijing to modify its policies. For example, he says significant numbers of detainees, especially older people, have returned to their communities or moved into factories in recent years, where conditions are better.

Yet there has also been a significant increase in criminal prosecutions in Xinjiang, as former detainees have moved into the formal prison system, he says.

Seeking justice

The U.N. report calls on China to release 鈥渁ll individuals arbitrarily deprived of their liberty鈥� in Xinjiang, 鈥渨hether in VETCs, prisons, or other detention facilities,鈥� and to ensure families of those detained have contact with their loved ones. The government should move urgently to ensure its counterterrorism laws in Xinjiang conform with international human rights law, and to repeal all discriminatory laws against Uyghurs and other Muslims, it says.

Ms. Abbas, the Uyghur American activist, believes the report will bring positive change for Uyghurs in China. 鈥淭he pressure definitely works,鈥� she says.聽

Despite Beijing鈥檚 public posture, 鈥渓ittle by little they are releasing some people,鈥� says Ms. Abbas, whose sister, Gulshan Abbas, is serving a prison sentence on terrorism charges.

鈥淢issing her and loving her keeps refueling me to fight harder,鈥� says Ms. Abbas. 鈥淚 will keep going until I see her.鈥�

Adila Sadir, a Uyghur immigrant who runs a restaurant in Boston, says the U.N. report substantiating the rights violations marks 鈥渁 huge improvement of the Uyghurs鈥� case.鈥澛�

Ms. Sadir says the mass detentions have had far-reaching impacts. Even though she has more freedom in the U.S., the knowledge that her father is imprisoned in Xinjiang and that she can鈥檛 do anything to help him is a constant source of anguish. 鈥淭he Chinese government is detaining people not only in my hometown, but here in a foreign country, they mentally torture us. It is very painful,鈥� she says.

鈥淚 think the report will be a really big help for Uyghurs, but I don鈥檛 know what will happen next,鈥� she says.