BERLIN, – A German government spokeswoman expressed concern over the human rights situation in China’s Xinjiang region on Wednesday, urging China to be honest about developments in the province.
Berlin’s China policy is “under development,” according to a government spokesperson at a regular press briefing.
Authorities in Xinjiang are accused by Western powers and human rights organisations of detaining and torturing Uyghurs and other minorities in camps. The camps are described as vocational training institutions to prevent religious extremism, according to Beijing.
“In terms of the situation in Xinjiang, I can say in principle that the federal government – and here we agree with our EU partners – continues to view the development of the human rights situation in the province with great concern,” the spokesperson added, urging Beijing to ensure transparency about the province’s developments.
[embedpost slug=”no-deal-on-new-eu-sanctions-against-russia-expected-at-leaders-summit-germany/”]
Following new media accusations of human rights atrocities in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, Germany’s economy minister stated on Tuesday that Berlin is changing its approach to China and will prioritise human rights issues.
On Wednesday, China’s foreign ministry responded, saying that Beijing vehemently opposes attempts to malign China through distortion and deceit.
On Tuesday, the BBC, Der Spiegel, and other news outlets announced that they had obtained a massive cache of data detailing China’s use of so-called “re-education” camps and formal prisons as two independent but related systems of mass detention for Uyghurs.
Volkswagen (VOWG p.DE) spokeswoman told Reuters that the carmaker, Europe’s largest, was concerned about recent reports coming out of China.
“The images of human rights atrocities in Xinjiang leave us startled,” said Albrecht von der Hagen, president of the Association of Family Businesses.
“Yes, Europe must become more independent of autocracies,” he said, adding that “this requires Germany and Europe to reposition themselves through increased commerce with democratic constitutional governments.”
Berlin will “examine in greater detail” the reports, according to a German government official.
