Observer Report Beijing
China on Monday rejected “slanderous attacks” about conditions for Muslim Uighurs and other minorities living in its Xinjiang region, insisting that they enjoyed freedom of religion and labour rights.
Activists and UN rights experts have said that at least one million Muslims are detained in camps in the remote western region. China denies abuses and says its camps provide vocational training and are needed to fight extremism.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told the UN Human Rights Council that it was taking counter-terrorism measures in accordance with the law and that Xinjiang enjoyed “social stability and sound development” after four years without any “terrorist case”.
There were 24,000 mosques in Xinjiang, where people of all ethnic groups also enjoyed labour rights, he said.
