US welcomes ILO report slamming China for racial, religious discrimination in Xinjiang
Feb 11, 2022
Washington [US], February 11 : The United States on Thursday welcomed the issuance of a report by a committee of the International Labor Organization (ILO) calling on the Chinese government to review its laws and practices of employment discrimination against racial and religious minorities in Xinjiang.
This comes as several countries rights groups and members of the international community continue to raise a concern about the human rights conditions in Muslim dominated northwest China.
"This report, produced by the ILO's Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations, expresses deep concern regarding the PRC's policies and calls on the PRC government to take specific steps toward eliminating racial and religious discrimination in employment and occupation, and to amend national and regional policies utilizing vocational training and rehabilitation centers for 'political re-education' based on administrative detention," the US State Departement said in a statement.
The United States has called on China to take the steps requested by the Committee of Experts.
"We also reiterate our call for the PRC to end its genocide and crimes against humanity perpetrated against the predominantly Muslim Uyghurs and members of other ethnic and religious minority groups in Xinjiang, as well as its use of these groups for forced labour in Xinjiang and beyond," the statement added.
It further said that the US is committed to working with our international partners and allies to end forced labour and strengthen international action against the ongoing genocide and crimes against humanity in Xinjiang.
Earlier this month, French Parliament slammed China's "genocide" of its Uyghur Muslim people on Thursday, in a resolution that could sour relations between Paris and Beijing only two weeks before the Winter Olympics.
Last year, similar resolutions were passed by parliaments in Britain, Canada, and the Netherlands last year, and the US government has also condemned what it deems genocide in Xinjiang.