UNITED NATIONS: China’s treatment of ethnic Uighurs in Xinjiang province came under debate at the United Nations on Tuesday, with 54 nations praising Beijing’s “remarkable achievements in the field of human rights” but 23 states assailing its record.

It all began when the 23 nations — mostly western — backed a British statement condemning Beijing’s track record.

However, China’s allies countered the move with a statement of their own that won even broader support, with 54 states supporting a Belarus text that heaped effusive praise on Beijing. They included Pakistan, Russia, Egypt, Bolivia, the Democra­tic Republic of Congo and Serbia.

The duelling statements at the UN General Assembly are non-binding, but highlight the divide on China’s human rights record — particularly as Beijing moves to flex its diplomatic and economic clout abroad.

Rights groups claim more than one million Uighurs and other mostly Muslim ethnic minorities have been rounded up in internment camps in Xinjiang. After initially denying their existence, Beijing now defends the camps as “vocational education centres” that are necessary to counter religious extremism and terrorism.

Britain’s UN statement expressed concerns “regarding credible reports of mass detention; efforts to restrict cultural and religious practices; mass surveillance disproportionately targeting ethnic Uighurs; and other human rights violations and abuses”.

“The Chinese government should urgently... (refrain) from the arbitrary detention of Uighurs and members of other Muslim communities,” it said. Countries backing it included the United States, Germany, France, Canada, Japan and New Zealand.

In contrast, the statement from Belarus praised Beijing’s human rights record that won support from over 50 nations. “We commend China’s remarkable achievements in the field of human rights by adhering to the people-centred development philosophy and protecting and promoting human rights through development,” the statement said.

“We also appreciate China’s contributions to the international human rights cause,” it added.

Published in Dawn, October 31st, 2019