A group of UN labour experts have expressed their ‘deep concern’ after evaluating the treatment of ethnic and religious minorities in China, and in particular in the northwestern Xinjiang region.
A committee of 20 experts appointed by the International Labour Organisation to evaluate how countries apply various international labour conventions took China to task in its annual report, published this week.
The committee had evaluated allegations by the International Trade Union Confederation in late 2020 that Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in Xinjiang were systematically being used for forced labour in agriculture.
Rights groups also say at least one million Uyghurs have been incarcerated in ‘re-education camps’ in Xinjiang.
Beijing vehemently denies all such charges, and maintains the camps are vocational training centres aimed at reducing the appeal of Islamic extremism.
In its detailed response, which was attached to the ILO report, it slammed the ITUC allegations in particular as ‘untrue and politically motivated.’
‘Having duly considered the information provided by the Government in response to these serious allegations, the Committee expresses its deep concern’ the ILO report said.
The expert committee called on Beijing to reorient ‘the mandate of vocational training and education centres from political re-education based on administrative detention’.
Instead, it said, they should be ‘assisting ethnic and religious minorities in the development and use of their capabilities for work in their own best interests and in accordance with their own aspirations.’
The experts also called on Chinese authorities to stop requiring companies and trade unions to fulfil ‘deradicalisation duties’, and to stop preventing them from ‘promoting equality of opportunity and treatment in employment and occupation without discrimination based on race, national extraction, religion or political opinion.’
The committee also asked Beijing to provide detailed information about the measures it was taking to ensure the activities at the vocational training centres in Xinjiang were in line with China’s international obligations.
And it requested details on steps taken to ‘promote equality of opportunity and treatment for the Uyghurs and other ethnic minority groups when seeking to access employment outside the Xianjing Autonomous Province.’
It said Beijing should ‘reply in full’ before all ILO member states during the UN agency’s annual International Labour Conference in June.
In its response, the Chinese government meanwhile insisted that ‘under its leadership, Xinjiang has made great progress in safeguarding human rights and development.
People from all ethnic groups in Xinjiang ‘voluntarily participate in employment of their own choice’, it said.
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