New Delhi: China remains silent on India’s abstention from UNHRC vote on human rights situation in Xinjiang. China has defended its crackdown on Uyghur Muslims and said its aim is to combat terrorism and separatism.
India on Thursday abstained from voting on the Xinjiang issue at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva. Following this, India called for the rights of the people of the autonomous region to be respected and guaranteed. It is also interesting to note that these comments come amid an ongoing border dispute between India and China in eastern Ladakh.
“I have listened to the relevant reports. I would like to emphasize that issues related to Xinjiang are not related to human rights. “It is countering violent terrorism, extremism and separatism,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning said. She also told a media conference that there has been no violent terrorist attack in Xinjiang for more than five consecutive years.
But Mao remained silent when asked by reporters what he had to say regarding India’s abstention from voting on a resolution at the UNHRC in Geneva that called for a discussion on concerns over the human rights situation in Xinjiang. After 17 members voted in favor and 19 members, including China, voted once morest, the 47-member council rejected the draft resolution to ‘discuss the human rights situation in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region’. 11 countries including India, Brazil, Mexico and Ukraine abstained from the vote.
The draft resolution was presented by a core group comprising Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, the UK and the USA. Co-sponsored by several states, including Turkey. China has faced severe criticism for its treatment of Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang province. Human rights groups believe China is arbitrarily holding up to one million Uighur Muslims in camps in the name of fighting religious extremism, PTI reported.
