China slams UK allegations about Xinjiang region as ‘most preposterous lie of century’
China has censured as the “most preposterous lie of the century” after the British parliament accused Beijing of committing "genocide" against the Muslim Uighur minority in the Xinjiang region.
The Chinese embassy in London said in a statement on Friday that Britain should "immediately right its wrong moves,” and stop meddling in China's domestic affairs after a group of British parliamentarians called on the government to take action to end what they called as “genocide” taking place in Xinjiang.
“The unwarranted accusation by a handful of British MPs that there is ‘genocide’ in Xinjiang is the most preposterous lie of the century, an outrageous insult and affront to the Chinese people, and a gross breach of international law and the basic norms governing international relations,” the statement said.
“China strongly opposes the UK’s blatant interference in China’s internal affairs,” the embassy added.
In a motion brought by Conservative MP Nusrat Ghani earlier in the week, British lawmakers claimed that Uighurs in Xinjiang were suffering “crimes against humanity and genocide,” and called on the government to use international law to bring it to an end.
The support for the motion is non-binding, meaning it is up to the government to decide what action, if any, to take next.
Resource-rich and strategically located on the borders of Central Asia, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region is key to China’s growing energy needs.
The community makes up about 45 percent of the region’s population, with the West accusing Beijing of cultural, religious and economic discrimination in the region.
Last year, a UN human rights panel alleged that up to two million Uighurs had been forced into “political camps for indoctrination” in the autonomous region, which is home to about 10 million Uighurs.
China rejects claims of mistreating Uighurs, saying it has been taking anti-terrorism measures against separatists in the region who are seeking to join Takfiri outfits such as al-Qaeda.
Beijing describes the camps in Xinjiang as “vocational education and employment training centers,” which are part of its efforts to tackle underdevelopment and a lack of employment in the area.
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