China has accused Australia of racism and war crimes after an Australian diplomat raised concerns about torture and slavery in Xinjiang province.
The reaction came after Australian Ambassador James Larsen made a joint statement on behalf of 15 countries during a United Nations General Assembly meeting in Pakistan on Tuesday.
The statement calls on Beijing to address allegations of human rights abuses and “crimes against humanity.”
In a forceful response on Wednesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian criticized Australia’s stance, saying it was motivated by “ideological bias” and “selfish political interest.”
“Due to their ideological bias, Australia, the United States and a handful of other Western countries fueled confrontation on multilateral platforms for their selfish political interests,” he said at a news conference.
‘Australia, long plagued by systemic racism and hate crimes, has grossly violated the rights of refugees and immigrants and left indigenous people in vulnerable living conditions.
“Australian soldiers have committed heinous crimes in Afghanistan and other countries during their military operations overseas,” Mr Jian said.
The Chinese spokesperson then attacked Australia’s allies.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said Australia is ‘riddled with systemic racism’
Australia’s UN ambassador James Larsen calls on China to review human rights abuses
“The United States and some Western countries have a bad record on racism, gun violence, judicial injustice, wealth gap, abuse of force, unilateral sanctions and other issues,” he said.
“These Western countries turn a blind eye to their serious human rights problems at home, but meanwhile they point the finger at other countries.”
The United Nations report Larsen references found that the treatment of ethnic minorities and Uyghur Muslims in China’s Xinjian province amounted to crimes against humanity in a report published two years ago.
The report, published two years ago, details cases of torture, armed rape and sexual violence, mass detentions, slave labor and widespread surveillance in Xinjiang.
Despite countless witness testimonies and independent documentation about forced labor sites, which the Chinese government calls “vocational training centers,” Beijing has dismissed the UN report’s conclusions.
About 100 countries responded to Mr. Larsen’s motion by saying that China’s internal affairs were China’s business.
“The fact that more than 100 Member States expressed their support for China’s just position demonstrates what the international community really stands for and demonstrates that the attempt by a handful of Western countries, including Australia and the United States, to resort to political manipulation under the pretext of human rights will not gain support and will never succeed,” said Mr Lin.
But most countries have signed up to China’s Belt and Road Initiative or have a spotty human rights record themselves.
During his remarks at the UN, Mr Larsen admitted that no country could claim to have a “perfect” human rights record.
“No country has a perfect human rights record, but no country is above a fair review of its human rights obligations,” he said.
“It is up to all of us not to undermine international human rights commitments that benefit us all and for which all States are responsible.”
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Australia ‘won’t agree on what we owe’
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese responded to the criticism while addressing journalists in Apia, Samoa, ahead of the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting.
“When it comes to China, we have said we will cooperate where we can, disagree where necessary, and engage in our national interest,” he said Thursday.
‘We have raised human rights issues with China. We have done it consistently and clearly.”
Estimates suggest China has detained around one million Uyghurs and other minorities in internment camps, known as training centers, in recent years.
The damning 2022 report found that “discriminatory detention” has stripped minorities in the region of “fundamental rights,” constituting “crimes against humanity.”
China’s initial responses claimed that the report was based on “lies fabricated by anti-China forces.”
