PARIS, Jan. 21 (EP/DPA) –
France’s National Assembly on Thursday adopted a resolution condemning as “genocide” the Chinese government’s treatment of the Uighur ethnic minority, most of whom live in the northwest of the country.
The lower house of the French Parliament gave the green light to the resolution, with almost all MPs voting in favor – 169 votes in favor and only one against.
With this measure, the French Assembly demands an end to the repression of this group and urges the government of Emmanuel Macron to put pressure on China, as well as to declare the treatment of the Uyghurs as a “genocide”.
French Commerce Minister Franck Riester said it was not a matter for the government to legally declare “genocide”, although he had alluded to serious human rights violations.
Riester said the French government condemned the Chinese government’s mistreatment of Uyghurs, demanded an end to it and tried to put the issue on the international agenda.
China has come under increasing criticism for alleged abuses against the predominantly Muslim ethnic group, although Chinese authorities deny the allegations.
This situation is becoming a daily crossroads for international diplomacy with China, especially as the Winter Olympics approach in the Chinese capital, Beijing.
Citizens who emigrated from the Xinjiang region, where there are many Uighurs, said that on leaving the country they suffered a series of human rights violations, and were rounded up and sent to establishments where they are forced to renounce their customs associated with the Uighur culture.
China has accused some Uighur groups of supporting separatist movements and even being behind terrorist attacks.
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