Editorial: UN Continues Inaction on China’s Uyghur Genocide

It is the UN’s responsibility to address the atrocities committed by the Chinese government against the Uyghurs

Despite growing evidence of atrocities, the response from the United Nations remains woefully inadequate. For years, Uyghur groups have been calling on the U.N. to take decisive action. However, on Friday, U.N. officials denied accusations that they have done too little to address the severe human rights violations in the Uyghur homeland by the Chinese government.This denial came just a day after leading campaigners demanded more substantial measures.

It is the UN’s responsibility to address the atrocities committed by the Chinese government against the Uyghurs, yet even after publishing its own reports, the organization has taken no meaningful action to date.

On Thursday, various rights groups urged U.N. rights chief Volker Turk to act on the explosive 2022 report detailing violations against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities. The report, authored by Turk’s predecessor, Michelle Bachelet, as High Commissioner for Human Rights, highlighted potential “crimes against humanity” in Uyghur homeland, officially Xinjiang. It contained “credible” allegations of widespread torture, arbitrary detention, and violations of religious and reproductive rights against Uyghurs and other Muslim groups—allegations that China has vehemently dismissed.

On Friday, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, the International Service for Human Rights, and the World Uyghur Congress issued a joint call to action. They warned that the ongoing absence of public reporting by the high commissioner to follow up on the documented atrocity crimes risks undermining the trust placed in his office by victims and survivors.

Responding to these claims, a spokesperson for the U.N.’s rights office acknowledged the concerns regarding Uyghurs, specifically reports of arbitrary detentions, enforced disappearances, and discrimination based on religion and ethnicity faced by the Uyghurs. Liz Throssell, speaking to AFP, stated that the OHCHR is engaging with China on a range of human rights issues, including follow-up to the report. During a recent visit, officials emphasized the adverse impacts of national security and counterterrorism laws, family separation, and the lack of transparency on missing persons, urging China to comply with international law.

On August 31, 2022, just minutes before the end of High Commissioner Michelle Bachelet’s term at midnight Geneva time, UN rights chief’s office published a comprehensive 48-page report on human rights in the Uyghur Region (Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region), stating that China may have committed crimes against humanity against Uyghurs.