TORONTO (AP) – The Canadian House of Commons voted on Monday to declare that China is committing genocide against more than 1 million Uighurs in western Xinjiang, but Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his cabinet abstained on voting.
The non-mandatory motion was passed 266-0, as virtually everyone, except Trudeau and his cabinet, voted in favor of the measure that also called on the International Olympic Committee to withdraw the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.
A senior government official said that declaring something in Parliament will not produce adequate results in China and that it is necessary to work with international allies and partners. The official spoke on condition of anonymity, as he was not authorized to speak publicly about the matter.
The main opposition parties supported the motion and control most seats in the House of Commons. Trudeau’s cabinet is made up of 37 liberal legislators, including the prime minister. There are 154 lawmakers from Trudeau’s Liberal party in the House of Commons and the rest of the liberal lawmakers voted freely in the motion.
Liberal Foreign Minister Marc Garneau abstained like the rest of the cabinet. He said in a statement that there should be a reliable international investigation in response to the accusations of genocide.
“We remain deeply disturbed by horrific reports of human rights violations in Xinjiang, including the use of arbitrary detention, political re-education, forced labor, torture and forced sterilization,” said Garneau.
Opposition Conservative Party leader Erin O’Toole said he is asking the government to confirm the statement approved by the House of Commons and to work with allies like the United States to push for an end to China’s fields and conduct.
“There is real suffering going on in China. There is a genocide going on, ”said O’Toole. “Our values are not for sale. And Mr. Trudeau needed to send that message today and he failed. “
Former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stated before leaving office that China’s policies against Xinjiang Muslims and ethnic minorities were crimes against humanity and genocide. His successor, Antony Blinken, reiterated the statement on his first day in office.
Researchers and rights groups estimate that since 2016, China has arrested a million or more Uighurs and other minorities in prisons and vast fields of indoctrination that the state calls training centers.
Pompeo cited widespread forced birth control and forced labor among Uighurs. The Associated Press reported last year that the Chinese government was systematically forcing sterilization and abortion on Uighurs and other Muslim women and sent many to camps simply because they had many children.
The vote is the latest attempt to hold China accountable for its treatment of Uighurs and other predominantly Muslim and ethnic Turkish minorities, who have been subjected to an unprecedented crackdown that is increasingly attracting international concern.
China denies any abuses and insists that the measures taken are necessary to combat terrorism and a separatist movement.
China’s envoy to Canada told Canadian parliamentarians over the weekend to dodge China’s internal affairs.
Trudeau hesitated to use the word “genocide”, which he called an “extremely charged” term.
“When it comes to applying the very specific word genocide, we simply need to make sure that all i’s are dotted and et’s are crossed before a determination like that is made,” said Trudeau last week.
Kalbinur Tursun, a Uighur who fled China, joined opposition conservatives in a virtual call before the vote and said the world did not believe in the horrors of the Holocaust until concentration camps were exposed for all to see after World War II. Worldwide.
“The Jews of yesterday are the Uighurs of today,” said Tursun. Two weeks ago, Tursun said the Chinese police contacted her with “threatening text messages and calls reminding me to stop talking”. She said she was speaking publicly in an appeal to save the lives of her relatives at home.
Canada continues to pressure Beijing to release Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, both detained in apparent retaliation for the Canadian arrest of Meng Wanzhou, a senior executive at Chinese technology company Huawei and daughter of the company’s founder. The US is seeking Meng’s extradition on charges of fraud, and its extradition case is in Canadian courts. His arrest severely damaged relations between China and Canada. China also sentenced two other Canadians to death and suspended canola imports.
“It’s pretty safe to bet that the two Michaels are on your mind,” said historian Robert Bothwell of Trudeau.