Image: Chinese Embassy in the United States
Hu Binchen, a Chinese official, has applied for a top position at Interpol. His candidacy sounds an alarm that China could again abuse the international organization to haunt its critics, including members of the Uyghur community in exile.
In July 2021, Idris Hasan, an Uyghur resident of Turkey, was flying to Morocco from Turkey, unaware that China had placed him on the Interpol Red Alert list. He was detained at Casablanca airport at China’s request. Beijing has repeatedly abused the Interpol Red Notice to go after dissidents in exile.
Hu Binchen, a deputy general in China’s Ministry of Public Security, is one of the three candidates for election to Interpol’s executive committee. The election will take place at Interpol’s general assembly in Istanbul in a week’s time.
‘Having a Chinese official at Interpol would be like putting the fox in charge of the hen house’, says Bill Browder, the Head of Global Magnitsky Justice campaign. If he succeeds, Binchen would be one of 13 members supervising the work of Interpol’s general secretary. Interpol has 19 databases containing millions of pieces of information including biometrics records and details of the stolen property such as passports, vehicles, and weapons.
Source: Sydney Morning Herald