Canadian Parliament Says China Genocide Against Ethnic Uighurs

Rallies in support of Uighurs in the United States. (Wikimedia Commons / Malcolm Brown)

JAKARTA - The Canadian parliament, with an absolute vote of 266 to 0, stated that China had committed genocide against the ethnic Uighur minority in Xinjiang, in a motion supported by all opposition parties and a number of lawmakers from the ruling Liberal Party.

The result of this motion makes Canada the second country after the United States, to recognize China's actions against Uighurs as genocide, as reported by the BBC.

With this agreement, Canada's Parliament also voted to pass amendments to have Canada ask the International Olympic Committee, to remove the 2022 Winter Olympics from Beijing, if the genocide continues.

"This step is necessary to send a clear and unequivocal signal that we will defend human rights and human rights dignity, even if it means sacrificing some economic opportunity," stressed opposition leader Erin O'Toole.

On the other hand, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who along with most of his cabinet expressed abstention, is still hesitant to call China's actions against the Uighur minority in Xinjiang a genocide. According to him, the statement is very 'laden' and requires further examination before a decision is made.

Meanwhile, Chinese Ambassador to Canada Cong Peiwu told the Canadian Press that the motion filed regarding the Uighurs in Xinjiang was a form of interference in China's internal affairs.

"We are firmly against it because it contradicts the facts. There is absolutely nothing like genocide happening in Xinjiang, "he stressed.

Meanwhile, the Symbolic Movement of Canada did not explain its next steps, but said the Canadian government needed to follow in the footsteps of its neighbor, the United States.