Tag: Uighur Muslims

Bishop of Guildford highlights issues of modern slavery and repression in China

On 19th December 2024, the Bishop of Guildford spoke in a debate on human rights in China, highlighting the situation of the Uighur Muslims and urging the government to introduce safeguards to combat modern slavery in the supply chain:

The Lord Bishop of Guildford: My Lords, as the grandson of former medical missionaries in south-west China, I take great interest in this debate. As others have expressed, I am really grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Alton, for his remarkable and indefatigable commitment to human rights and freedom of religion or belief all around the world. I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Ahmad—it is a privilege to speak after him—for his huge commitment in this area over many years.

I share with my forebears a deep respect for the Chinese people, their culture, their discipline and their character, but I have been horrified by stories of the oppression and maltreatment of religious minorities and critics of the regime over very many years. I have paid several illuminating visits to China to witness that for myself. This afternoon, like others, I wish to highlight the desperate situation of Uighur Muslims in the north-western region of Xinjiang, whom the other place has declared as being subject to genocide. Specifically, I urge His Majesty’s Government to ensure that the screening of goods made in forced labour camps—everything from solar panels to tomatoes—prevents them being imported into this country.

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Bishop of St Albans asks about forced labour in China

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 5th March 2024:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of recent Human Rights Watch research that suggests several major carmakers could be complicit in abuse of China’s Uyghur Muslims.

Lord Johnson of Lainston (Con, DfT): Modern slavery is a barbaric crime which we are determined to stamp out. In 2022, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights published its assessment of the human rights situation in Xinjiang, which found that China had carried out “serious human rights violations” against Uyghurs and other predominantly Muslim minorities.

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Bishop of St Albans asks about human rights abuses in Xinjiang, China

The Bishop of St Albans received the following written answer on 29th January 2024:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans asked His Majesty’s Government:

  • what discussions they have had with counterparts in other governments about taking action to impose targeted sanctions on Chinese officials involved in human rights abuses in Xinjiang.
  •  what representations they have made to the government of China regarding the treatment of Uighurs and other Turkic people in Xinjiang.
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Bishop of St Albans calls for diplomacy to be matched with action on Uyghur population in China

“what moral authority will we lose, and what price will the Uighurs pay, if we do not do all in our power, whatever the cost, to confront these dreadful atrocities that are unfolding in front of our eyes?”

In the House of Lords on 25th November 2021 Peers debated a Motion from Lord Alton of Liverpool, “That this House takes note of the reported remarks of the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs that a genocide is underway against the Uyghur population in Xinjiang, China.”

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: My Lords, I too pay tribute to the noble Lord, Lord Alton, for his tireless work in this area. I also share with him a sense of frustration—I feel as if I have stood up so many times as we have engaged with this issue, yet it seems that we are not able to confront it in a way that is really making a difference. Despite all our hopes of human progress, it is quite extraordinary that here we are, at the start of the 21st century, witnessing events such as we see and which are now well documented. There is no doubt that they are going on.

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Bishop of St Albans asks about potential for partial boycott of Beijing Winter Olympics

The Bishop of St Albans asked about the potential for a partial boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics on 18th March 2021, during a discussion on China’s treatment of Uighurs and incursions into Taiwanese airspace:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans [V]: What consideration have Her Majesty’s Government given to the suggestion of a diplomatic and economic, rather than full-scale, boycott of the 2022 Beijing winter Olympics, in response to China’s ongoing repression of the Uighur Muslim minority?

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Bishop of St Albans asks about gambling harm, housebuilding and Uighurs in China

On 10th November the Bishop of St Albans received written answers to questions he had tabled on gambling, housebuilding, and equipment used to construct Uighur detention facilities.

Gambling

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of NatWest’s announcement of a 48-hour gambling block for debit cards to reduce gambling-related harm; and what action they are taking to encourage other companies in the banking sector to adopt similar policies. [HL9946] Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans asks about gambling harm, housebuilding and Uighurs in China”

Bishop of St Albans: China should not host Winter Olympics because of Uighur treatment

On 23rd September 2020 the Bishop of St Albans, Rt Revd Alan Smith, asked Government about the condition of Uighur internment camps in Xinjiang in China, and urged that the International Olympic Committee review China’s hosting of the 2022 Winter Olympics. The exchanges are below, with the further questions asked by other Members:

The Lord Bishop of St Albans: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the condition of Uighur internment camps in Xinjiang in China.

The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon) (Con): My Lords, there are reports of torture and overcrowding in detention centres in Xinjiang, where over a million Uighurs are extrajudicially detained. We have repeatedly condemned the abuses of human rights perpetrated against the Uighurs in Xinjiang and again call upon China to immediately allow UN observers unfettered access to the region and to end extrajudicial detention. Continue reading “Bishop of St Albans: China should not host Winter Olympics because of Uighur treatment”

Bishop of Southwark calls for Government action on human rights abuses in China

On 22nd July a statement was given about China. The Rt Revd Christopher Chessun, Bishop of Southwark asked a follow up question.

Lord Bishop of Southwark: My Lords, the Foreign Secretary is correct about the importance and place of China in the world but China’s human rights record, especially as it concerns Uighurs, has been well known for some time. In the light of the recent US Uighurs human rights act, will Her Majesty’s Government consider similar measures and produce a list of Chinese companies involved in the construction and operation of the camps? Given the rising and publicly expressed concern in this country, including by the Board of Deputies, will the Minister now accept that it is high time we took firmer steps to counter Beijing’s harrowing human rights abuses against the Uighurs, and that such abuses should influence negotiations on any future trade deal with China?

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