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.
Nearly One-in-Six Americans Have Acted on AI Medical Advice Without Speaking to Human, Poll Shows
ICYMI: Judge Shuts Down Democrats’ Attempt to Rush in Late Votes After Candidates Drop Out
Top Dem operative brushes off latest scandal plaguing Maine Senate candidate as ‘salacious gossip’
Gun rights gets ‘greatest restoration’ in 100 years with latest Trump DOJ move, lawmaker hails
Democrats realize they love Haley Stevens, just a little too late
Veteran pediatrician hails Medicaid shift ending youth sex-change treatments: ‘This is not denial of care’
Legal expert calls for Smithsonian leadership overhaul over ‘self-loathing’ portrayal of history: ‘It’s bile’
Man charged with assault, hate crimes after allegedly disrupting Shabbat services at NYC synagogue
Shake Shack worker allegedly calls out before robbing own restaurant, returns in uniform 2 days later
California Man Receives Postcard Sent by His Late Parents 26 Years Ago
DFW Airport scraps controversial Islamic foot-washing station plan as Texas Gov Abbott takes aim
California teen faces prison after viral video shows him squaring up, repeatedly kicking sea lion in the face
Delta flight diverted twice after lavatory leak floods cabin, leaves passengers stranded for hours
Reagan National Airport makes drastic change following deadly 2025 midair collision
Watch: Little League Coach Declares, ‘Jesus Is Still Lord’ Live on ESPN
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.
Nearly One-in-Six Americans Have Acted on AI Medical Advice Without Speaking to Human, Poll Shows
ICYMI: Judge Shuts Down Democrats’ Attempt to Rush in Late Votes After Candidates Drop Out
Top Dem operative brushes off latest scandal plaguing Maine Senate candidate as ‘salacious gossip’
Gun rights gets ‘greatest restoration’ in 100 years with latest Trump DOJ move, lawmaker hails
Democrats realize they love Haley Stevens, just a little too late
Veteran pediatrician hails Medicaid shift ending youth sex-change treatments: ‘This is not denial of care’
Legal expert calls for Smithsonian leadership overhaul over ‘self-loathing’ portrayal of history: ‘It’s bile’
Man charged with assault, hate crimes after allegedly disrupting Shabbat services at NYC synagogue
Shake Shack worker allegedly calls out before robbing own restaurant, returns in uniform 2 days later
California Man Receives Postcard Sent by His Late Parents 26 Years Ago
DFW Airport scraps controversial Islamic foot-washing station plan as Texas Gov Abbott takes aim
California teen faces prison after viral video shows him squaring up, repeatedly kicking sea lion in the face
Delta flight diverted twice after lavatory leak floods cabin, leaves passengers stranded for hours
Reagan National Airport makes drastic change following deadly 2025 midair collision
Watch: Little League Coach Declares, ‘Jesus Is Still Lord’ Live on ESPN
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.
