Sixty-nine MEPs from the EPP, S&D, Renew Europe, Greens/EFA, ECR, ID and non-attached groups in the European Parliament called, on 24 July, on the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, to take a stand over human rights violations against the Uighur minority in Xinjiang (China).
Expressing their “deep concern about the recent discovery of new dehumanising actions” taken by the Chinese government against Muslim minorities in Xinjiang, MEPs called on Mr Borrell to “take a firm stand”.
“Urgent political action is (...) desperately needed”, they said in a letter from German MEPs Engin Eroglu (Renew Europe) and Reinhard Bütikofer (Greens/EFA), Miriam Lexmann (EPP, Slovakia), Anna Fotyga (ECR, Poland) and Raphaël Glucksmann (S&D, France).
MEPs also said that the EU should demand the establishment of a UN-independent international fact-finding mission, to bring the issue before the UN General Assembly and ultimately work towards a UN resolution on the subject.
“Targeted sanctions (...) should be initiated if the Chinese Government does not comply with the demands”, they warned.
MEPs said they were “looking forward” to continuing the conversation with the High Representative and to promote the search for common ground on taking further actions to rein in the ongoing harm against Xinjiang's Muslim minorities.
See the letter here: https://bit.ly/3fYAMxV (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)