UN human rights chief: China has arbitrarily detained Uyghurs, separated families

The U.N.’s new human right chief said his agency has documented China’s arbitrary detention of Uyghurs and the separation of children from their families in comments during a global update on human rights on Wednesday in Geneva.

Volker Türk, who took over last September, said his office has opened up channels of communication with various actors to follow up on human rights issues in China, including the protection of minorities such as Uyghurs, Tibetans and other groups.

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Press Release: Lawmakers Nominate the World Uyghur Congress for the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize

The World Uyghur Congress (WUC) has been nominated for the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize by Canadian Member of Parliament (MP), chair of the Subcommittee on International Human Rights (SDIR), and co-chair of the Canada-Uyghur Parliamentary Friendship Group, Sameer Zuberi, together with Canadian MP and SDIR co-chair Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe and leader of the Young Liberals in Norway, Ane Breivik.

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Uyghur Rights Groups Support Request to Debate China’s Xinjiang Record

FILE - Residents line up inside the Artux City Vocational Skills Education Training Service Center, which was revealed by leaked documents to be a forced indoctrination camp at the Kunshan Industrial Park in Artux in western China's Xinjiang region, Dec. 3, 2018.

Rights groups urge other countries to follow the lead of the U.S. and several other Western countries that are asking the United Nations Human Rights Council to hold a debate in its next session in 2023 on China’s human rights record in the Xinjiang region.

“The international community must remember its obligation to end atrocity crimes like genocide and crimes against humanity,” said Dolkun Isa, president of the World Uyghur Congress.

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UN members are considering action against China over its treatment of Uyghur Muslims, report says

Activists hold a demonstration against China's policies towards Uyghur Muslims in Jakarta, Indonesia on January 4, 2021.
  • The UN is facing the decision of how to respond to Chinese human rights violations of Uyghur Muslims.
  • A recent UN report outlined human rights abuses, which include arbitrary imprisonment.
  • China rejects the allegations and said action taken against the state will not work.

Multiple members of the UN Human Rights Council are considering bringing action against China over its treatment of Uyghur Muslims, Reuters reported.

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Haunting portrait of crying Uyghur Muslim at China’s ‘re-education’ Camp

 Haunting portrait of crying Uyghur Muslim at Chinese 're-education’ camp

This portrait of a crying Uyghur woman lays bare the heartbreaking human reality of China’s concentration camps.

Beijing has long been accused of discriminating against its minority population of Uyghur Muslims.

The government began building so-called ‘re-education’ camps in the northwest Xinjiang region in 2017 – after Uyghurs were blamed for several terrorist attacks.

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Thousands of detained Uyghurs pictured in leaked Xinjiang police files

Documents detailing shoot-to-kill policy for people who try to escape published as UN human rights chief visits region

One of the leaked images. China’s ruling Communist party is accused of detaining more than 1 million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in Xinjiang.

One of the leaked images. China’s ruling Communist party is accused of detaining more than 1 million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in Xinjiang. Photograph: BBCVincent Ni China affairs correspondentWed 25 May 2022 00.42 BSTFirst published on Tue 24 May 2022 13.30 BST

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