The US House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to toughen Washington’s position against China regarding its treatment of minority Uighurs, calling on President Donald Trump to apply sanctions against senior Chinese officials.
The Uighur Act of 2019 condemns Beijing’s “gross human rights violations” linked to the crackdown in the western region of Xinjiang, where as many as one million Uighurs and other mostly Muslim minorities are being held in re-education camps.
The measure, which passed 407 to 1, is a stronger version of the bill that cleared the Senate in September. The two versions must be reconciled into one bill that gets sent to Trump’s desk.
The vote is sure to draw China’s ire. Beijing has already threatened retaliation against Washington for Trump signing legislation last week supporting Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters, just as the world’s top two economies edge towards a trade truce.
The latest House measure condemns the mass arbitrary detainment of Uighurs and calls for closure of the re-education camps where they have been held and abused, according to rights groups and US lawmakers.
Former Arizona state Dem lawmaker gets a year in prison for sexual misconduct with a minor
Newsom gets hilarious reality check after turning to public for new state coin design
Just in: Houston Texans Star Injured in Shooting, Forcing Team to Break Bad News
Harvey Weinstein Rushed to Hospital After Heath Issues Were ‘Triggered’
Trump, DeSantis meet privately for several hours in Miami
Mom of Chiefs Fan Who Froze in Friend’s Backyard Slams Investigation – ‘There Should Be Some Charges’
Catholic Organization Creates AI ‘Priest,’ Defrocks Him Almost Immediately After Public Outcry Over Specific Detail
Colleges claim not all protesters getting arrested are part of their school communities: ‘Outside groups’
Defiant Kristi Noem defends killing farm pup amid criticism from Dems and GOP
Director Speaks Out on ‘Scary’ Johnny Depp Remarks, Feels ‘Betrayed’ with Media Revisionism
Trump and DeSantis Meet Privately in Florida for ‘Several Hours’ as VP Speculation Grows
Kirby: US remains hopeful for ‘6 weeks of peace’ with hostage deal that ‘Hamas has not fully rejected’
White House denies secret plot to oust Karine Jean-Pierre as Biden faces more bad news
Newsom Asks Public to Help Design New California Coin, Instantly Regrets It
Fetterman blasts ‘germ of antisemitism’ in college protests, ‘living in a pup tent for Hamas’ not helpful
The bill notably urges Trump to slap sanctions on Chinese officials behind the Uighur policy, including Chen Quanguo, the Communist Party chief for Xinjiang.
“Today the human dignity and human rights of the Uighur community are under threat from Beijing’s barbarous actions, which are an outrage to the collective conscience of the world,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told her colleagues shortly before the vote.
Congress “is taking a critical step to counter Beijing’s horrific human rights abuses against Uighurs,” she said.
“America is watching.”
Pelosi lashed out at Chinese authorities for orchestrating a repressive crackdown that includes pervasive mass state surveillance, solitary confinement, beatings, forced sterilization “and other forms of torture.”
Rights groups and witnesses accuse China of forcibly trying to draw Uighurs away from their Islamic customs and integrate them into the majority Han culture.
After initially denying their existence, Beijing now defends the camps, which it calls “vocational education centers,” as a necessary measure to counter religious extremism and terrorism.
Former Arizona state Dem lawmaker gets a year in prison for sexual misconduct with a minor
Newsom gets hilarious reality check after turning to public for new state coin design
Just in: Houston Texans Star Injured in Shooting, Forcing Team to Break Bad News
Harvey Weinstein Rushed to Hospital After Heath Issues Were ‘Triggered’
Trump, DeSantis meet privately for several hours in Miami
Mom of Chiefs Fan Who Froze in Friend’s Backyard Slams Investigation – ‘There Should Be Some Charges’
Catholic Organization Creates AI ‘Priest,’ Defrocks Him Almost Immediately After Public Outcry Over Specific Detail
Colleges claim not all protesters getting arrested are part of their school communities: ‘Outside groups’
Defiant Kristi Noem defends killing farm pup amid criticism from Dems and GOP
Director Speaks Out on ‘Scary’ Johnny Depp Remarks, Feels ‘Betrayed’ with Media Revisionism
Trump and DeSantis Meet Privately in Florida for ‘Several Hours’ as VP Speculation Grows
Kirby: US remains hopeful for ‘6 weeks of peace’ with hostage deal that ‘Hamas has not fully rejected’
White House denies secret plot to oust Karine Jean-Pierre as Biden faces more bad news
Newsom Asks Public to Help Design New California Coin, Instantly Regrets It
Fetterman blasts ‘germ of antisemitism’ in college protests, ‘living in a pup tent for Hamas’ not helpful
The House bill would require the State Department to produce a report within one year on the crackdown in Xinjiang.
And it would require the Commerce Department to ban US exports to entities in Xinjiang that are known to be used in the detention or surveillance of Muslim minorities, including facial recognition technology.
Republican Marco Rubio, a sponsor of the legislation in the US Senate, warned that China’s government and Communist Party “is working to systematically wipe out the ethnic and cultural identities” of Uighurs.
He applauded the House passage and said he looked forward to getting a reconciled bill to Trump’s desk.
Story cited here.
Scroll down to leave a comment:
