Nus Ghani, MP for Wealden, is urging the Government not to stay silent on China’s ethnic cleansing of the Uighurs.
The Magnitsky sanctions announced by the Foreign Secretary last month was a landmark moment for the United Kingdom, as it sets a new international gold standard for holding countries and individuals who violate human rights across the world accountable. However, while the Magnitsky sanctions focus heavily on the targeting of Russian individuals, there is a noticeable absence of citing human rights violations of the Uighurs in Xinjiang, China.
There is overwhelming evidence that the Chinese regime has been engaging in state-sponsored ethnic cleansing. Recently, a video re-emerged on social media, showing shaved men and women blindfolded and marched on to trains in Xinjiang.
However hard the Chinese Ambassador defended the Chinese Communist party's (CCP) version of life in Xinjiang, more footage of abuses and testimonies of traumatised survivors is coming to light. Women have shared stories of sexual abuse, with some reporting that they were forced to undergo abortions, have contraceptive devices implanted, or be fully sterilised. Population growth rates in the Uighur heartland plummeted by 84% between 2015 and 2018.
Nus Ghani said: “I have received an overwhelming volume of correspondence on the issue from Wealden residents. Like them, I am deeply concerned about China’s actions in Xinjiang. China’s suppression of human rights meets the United Nations definition of genocide and it amounts to the largest incarceration of an ethno-religious minority since the Holocaust. I urge the Foreign Secretary to use the United Kingdom’s moral and legal authority to proceed quickly on the basis of the overwhelming evidence in Xinjiang.”
“I have also stressed the need to address China’s actions in Hong Kong to the Government. I am pleased that the United Kingdom will proceed by creating a bespoke immigration route for those holding British National Overseas (BNO) status, offering the right to remain for five years to work and study. This will be followed by the opportunity to apply for settled status and then citizenship.”
Nus has written articles for the Telegraph (available here and here) and Politics Home (available here). Nus has also spoken about the issue on Good Morning Britain (coverage here) and on BBC Radio 4 (coverage here).
Read Nus’ article on the situation in Hong Kong here.
