China takes action against Canadian institutions, individuals over Uyghurs, Tibet By Reuters
Beijing – China says it is taking steps to deal with two Canadian institutions and 20 people involved in human rights issues affecting the Uyghurs and Tibetans.
The measures, which came into force on Saturday, include a freeze on goods and an entry ban. The targets include the Canada-based Uyghur Rights Advocacy Project and the Canada-Tibet Committee, China’s Foreign Ministry said on its website on Sunday.
Rights groups accuse Beijing of widespread abuse of the Uyghurs, a minority Muslim group numbering 10 million in the western region of Xinjiang, including forced labor in camps. Beijing denies the abuse.
“I accept (the sanctions) as a badge of honor,” Mehmet Tohti, executive director of the Uyghur Rights Advocacy Project, said in an interview on Monday. “What we have done here in Canada has started to become popular in China and it is starting to hurt their plan or plans and for that reason, I see this as a sign of success,” added Tohti.
China took control of Tibet in 1950 in what it described as “peaceful liberation” from feudal serfdom. International human rights organizations and exiles have been constantly criticizing what they call China’s repressive regime in Tibetan areas.
The Canada-Tibet Committee said in a statement that the sanctions have strengthened its determination to continue to advocate for Tibet. It called on the Canadian government to ensure that those sanctioned are not harmed within Canada.
China said it was freezing the assets of the two institutions inside China. It said it is also freezing the Chinese territory of 15 people from the Uyghur Center and five people from the Tibet Committee, and is also banning them from entering China, including Hong Kong and Macau.
Calls to the Canadian embassy in Beijing were not returned. Reuters did not immediately receive a response from Global Affairs Canada.
