Human Rights Groups warn EU leaders about Beijing’s Crimes ahead of European Union-China Summit

23-03-2022

Michela Rivellino

China and Human Rights Researcher

Global Human Rights Defence

On March 18th, a group of human rights organisations sent a joint letter to the European Commission and the European Council to raise concern over the ongoing human rights violations perpetrated by the Chinese regime. Among the ten organizations that signed the document emerged the International Campaign for Tibet, Human Rights Watch, The Network of Chinese Human Rights Defenders and World Uyghur Congress.

Beyond the urgency to discuss the Ukraine crisis, the signatories stressed the importance of debating Beijing’s atrocities at the forthcoming EU-China Summit. In this regard, rights groups mentioned the crimes committed against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in Xinjiang, Beijing’s intent to disrupt Tibetans’ cultural and religious rights, as well as Chinese suppression of pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong.

With respect to the letter, the promoters proposed a series of requests. Among others, they appealed to the EU for suspending any bilateral human rights dialogue with China while promoting a more consistent dialogue with civil society. Furthermore, they asked for the adoption of an independent, international investigation and a mechanism to monitor and report on crimes against humanity, ensuring unrestricted access across China for NGOs, UN experts and diplomats. Finally, they urged the EU to adopt new effective targeted sanctions against Chinese entities that are responsible for enforcing threatening policies against minorities, peaceful critics, and human rights defenders.

Sources and further reading:

Human Rights Watch. (2022, March 18). “Joint NGO letter ahead of EU-China summit”. Human Rights Watch. From

https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/03/18/joint-ngo-letter-ahead-eu-china-summit.