China's Foreign Ministry announced Saturday that it has frozen the assets of two Canadian human rights organizations that advocated on behalf of oppressed Uyghur Muslims and Tibetans.
Two Canadian organizations affected Those targeted by Chinese sanctions are the Uighur Rights Advocacy Project (URAP) and the Canada-Tibet Committee. Twenty members of both organizations were listed by name, 15 of whom were members of URAP.
regime in beijing said Both groups will be prohibited from doing business with Chinese organizations or individuals, and members of the Canadian groups will be prohibited from traveling to China, Hong Kong and Macau.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained The sanctions are a “countermeasure” based on China's Foreign Sanctions Law. Although the statement does not explicitly state why these countermeasures are being taken, they are a response to Canada's announcement on December 10, International Human Rights Day, of sanctions against eight current and former Chinese officials. There is almost no doubt that it is.
Canada authorized Eight people, including the former head of the Chinese Communist Party in Tibet and Xinjiang (the Chinese province where most Uyghurs live), have been accused of engaging in human rights violations, including arbitrary detention, forced labor, religious oppression, and both psychological and physical abuse. Chinese officials were indicted.
On December 10, Canada's Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated, “Canada continues to express concern about human rights violations in China, and calls on the Chinese government to uphold its international human rights obligations, including through the United Nations Human Rights Council.''
Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly also condemned the “Chinese government-led crackdown” on Falun Gong practitioners when announcing the sanctions.
URAP Secretary General Mehmet Tofti said On Monday, his group said it would accept China's sanctions as a “medal of honor.”
“They do not deter us, but rather strengthen our resolve. This confirms that we are on the right path,” he said.
“This move indeed strengthens our resolve to continue on this path and continue to advocate for policies that provide a just and equitable solution to the ongoing brutal occupation and repression in Tibet,” said Canadian Tibet Commissioner. The Society also spoke in a similar spirit of defiance.
Human rights action group URAP general counsel Sarah Taich calls China's sanctions a “classic move away from authoritarian strategy” and attacks nonprofits in retaliation for Canada's “gross sanctions” He said there was no morally or legally acceptable basis for doing so. You're a human rights violator. ”
“The impact on people with family in China could be severe, and the Canadian government should take every opportunity to condemn it in the strongest possible terms,” she said.
