A London panel investigating the plight of Uyghurs in China on Friday heard witness testimony of torture and gang rapes, in a process slammed by Beijing as a mendacious smear.
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In the Sinister Disneyland of Xinjiang
China s Ongoing Oppression of the Uighurs
Western countries have accused China of genocide for its treatment of the Uighurs in Xinjiang. Beijing claims that everything is just fine in the homeland of the Muslim minority. We went there to take a look for ourselves.
27.05.2021, 12.49 Uhr
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The images seem made-to-order, and they are. Following prayer, the Uighurs of Kashgar dance in the square in front of the Id Kah Mosque, one of the largest in the Xinjiang region. They spin by the hundreds, throwing their hands in the air, performing the Sema, a traditional dance of the Muslim Sufi brotherhoods, as drummers on the mosque’s huge portal beat out the rhythm. It is the morning of May 13, the date of this year’s Muslim festival of Id al-Fitr, the end of Ramadan.
Chinese commerce minister Wang Wentao made the request in a video call with French trade minister Franck Riester after the European Parliament halted discussions last week.
Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato’s explanation that Japan’s foreign exchange and foreign trade laws lack provisions for imposing sanctions solely on the basis of human rights may be part of the reason for Japan’s reticence. However, other factors may be at play as well, including a reflexive reluctance to criticize publicly other countries’ human rights abuses. Concerns over Chinese economic retaliation, Tokyo Olympic Games boycotts, or that speaking out might prompt Beijing to be more aggressive in trying to annex the Senkaku Islands might also be at play.
What are the prospects Suga will announce that Japan will join in on sanctions when he visits Washington? Unfortunately, not particularly good if not urged on by his U.S. counterpart. Japan’s experiences with China over the past three decades have shown that Tokyo can be deeply reluctant to stand in support of human rights in China, even when that policy has failed to produce results. Recently declassified documents, f