He added that because Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps produces a lot of the agricultural products that are then exported from the region this increases concerns. The US placed sanctions on this company citing human rights abuses against the Uyghur. Chinese customs data shows exports from Xinjiang to New Zealand included a range of products such as cotton sheets and clothing, furniture, tomato paste, grapes and jam and marmalades. Globally there are significant concerns about China’s minority Uyghur population due to the arbitrary detention of up to a million people in Xinjiang. Detainees and prisoners are subjected to torture and other ill-treatment, cultural and political indoctrination, and forced labour, according to US non-profit Human Rights Watch. China denies the existence of forced labour in Xinjiang and says the arrangements are voluntary and part of a poverty alleviation programme, while the camps are part of a crackdown on terror.
Ardern needs to be seen backing her Five Eyes allies and their criticism on China, but without being so outspoken that New Zealand is landed with the type of sanctions Beijing has imposed on Australia.
Could it be that New Zealand is turning into . New Xi Land? questioned an ominous voice over.
It was part of a preview for an incendiary segment of Aus
27 Feb 2021
The mayor of Wellington, New Zealand, faced criticism Friday for his participation in a local Lunar New Year celebration which included New Zealand Han Chinese dancers dressing up in the cultural garb of Uyghur Muslims, New Zealand’s Stuff news site reported.
“The new year display included New Zealand Han Chinese dancers, dressing up in the cultural dress of Uyghur Muslims, and performing a Uyghur dance,” according to the report. The event was organized on February 12 by Wellington’s China Cultural Center and received financial support from Wellington’s Council City Housing.
“The Chinese Cultural Centre is part of the Chinese state’s united front apparatus. While it is a New Zealand incorporated society, it was founded and is managed by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the People’s Republic of China,” Stuff news noted on February 26.