Vilnius — Thursday’s Lithuanian parliament describes China’s treatment of Uighur minorities as a “genocide,” calls for a UN investigation into the camp, and urges the European Commission to consider relations with Beijing. It became the latest resolution.
The Biden administration in the United States, like parliaments in countries such as the United Kingdom and Canada, uses the term genocide to describe the actions of the Chinese Communist Party administration against Uighurs. Beijing denied minority abuse and accused the country of using the term.
A non-binding resolution, backed by three-fifths of Lithuanian parliamentarians, abolished Hong Kong’s National Security Act, put observers in Tibet, and with its spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, against the Chinese administration. Asked to start the talks.
Neither Prime Minister Ingrida Simonite nor Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis participated in the vote, despite attending parliament.
“We support democracy because we never forget the cruel lesson of living under the occupation of the Communist Party for 50 years,” said Dobir Sakarien, a member of the Diet who was blacklisted and sponsored by the Chinese administration. Said.
Lithuania, which was cracked down under Soviet rule from 1940 to 1991, is now a member of the EU and NATO and is important in promoting tougher western diplomatic routes towards communist countries such as Russia and China. Has played a role.
Lithuania announced in March that it would open a trade representative in Taiwan this year. Taiwan is angry with Beijing, seeing China as its territory. Taiwan is virtually an independent country, with its own democratically elected government, military, constitution and currency.
Rights groups, researchers, former residents, and some Western legislators have been members of China’s Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region authorities about 1 million Uighurs and other predominantly Muslim minorities since 2016. States to be arbitrarily detained.
Beijing initially denied the existence of the camp, but has since stated that the camp is a vocational training center designed to combat religious extremism.
Epoch Times staff contributed to this report