Beijing: China’s pushback over attacks on human rights in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region by the United States and its Western allies targets not only plans to coerce China, but also champions international justice and defends the interests of developing countries, according to officials and scholars familiar with the issues.
Behind the Xinjiang-related anti-China narratives is an attempt to contain China’s growth by stoking ideological confrontation, a trap that China should not fall prey to, they warned. Accusations linking cotton made in Xinjiang to claims of “forced labor” mark the latest episode in a long-standing defamation campaign by Western countries in recent years, the experts said.
However, an increasing number of countries are publicly responding to allegations being made to tarnish China’s image, meddle in its internal affairs and affect its economic and social stability. In one of the latest developments, 64 countries supported China on Xinjiang-related issues at the 46th regular session of the United Nations Human Rights Council earlier this year, Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said. The countries included Muslim nations such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Iran, Syria and Pakistan.
– The Daily Mail-China Daily News exchange item
