The Chinese national flag in Beijing, China. Picture: REUTERS/THOMAS PETER
“We will never give up but we are really disappointed by the reaction of Muslim countries,” he added. The motion was an attempt by the US and some Western countries to “use the UN human rights body to interfere in China's internal affairs,” said the foreign ministry in a post on its official website.China’s envoy had warned before the vote that the motion would create a precedent for examining other countries’ human rights records.
Rights groups accuse Beijing of abuses against Uyghurs, a mainly Muslim ethnic minority that numbers around 10-million in the western region of Xinjiang, including the mass use of forced labour in internment camps. The US has accused China of genocide. Beijing vigorously denies any abuses.The motion is the first time that the rights record of China, a powerful permanent Security Council member, has been on the council's agenda.