Faced with the repression of the Uighurs, the US deputies want to break the silence, and take action. The House of Representatives has approved an overwhelming majority of a bill calling for sanctions against China. The text, voted on Tuesday, has yet to be validated by the Senate, where it should also meet with great support, before being sent to President Donald Trump to accept or not to promulgate it.
"Today, the dignity and human rights of the Uyghurs are threatened by the barbaric acts of Beijing, which are an insult to the collective world conscience"said Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in the Chamber before the vote. "We are sending a message to Beijing: America is watching and will not remain silent"she added.
In the midst of a trade war between the United States and China, bilateral relations had already tightened last week with the promulgation, by Donald Trump, of a law supporting pro-democracy protests shaking China's autonomous territory. Hong Kong since June.
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Camps of "political re-education"
The text approved in the House Tuesday calls on the US President to impose sanctions on senior officials in Xinjiang, the region of northwestern China that has been placed under high security after being long hit by bloody attacks. Human rights organizations, experts and Washington blame Beijing for interning up to one million Muslims, including Uighurs, in political re-education camps.
Beijing denies this figure and talks about "Vocational training centers", intended to help the local population to find a job and away from the temptation of Islamism and terrorism. Attacks attributed to Uyghur militants have mourned China for many years. The government, which accuses "Separatist" and "Jihadists"responded by imposing a draconian security in Xinjiang – as big as three times Spain and border including with Pakistan and Afghanistan.
"Long live indignation" of Beijing
Beijing on Wednesday expressed "Long indignation" after the vote of the House of Representatives, the appellant "Correct your mistake" and do not "To interfere in Chinese internal affairs". The American bill "Arbitrarily slandering China's efforts to de-radicalize and counter terrorism"said Hua Chunying, a spokeswoman for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. "China will respond according to the evolution of the situation", she said in a statement, without offering details.
The Uyghurs are one of the 56 ethnic groups identified in China. Mostly Muslim, mostly speaking a Turkic language, they make up just under half of the 25 million people living in Xinjiang.
The US bill also urges the State Department to prepare a one-year report on the situation in the region, and the Ministry of Commerce to ban certain exports, including materials that can help facial recognition systems.
Likely adoption in the Senate
The Senate, with a Republican majority, unanimously adopted in September a different version of this bill, presented by the Republican Marco Rubio. Tuesday evening, he welcomed the vote of the House and declared to have "Haste" to work with senators so that this proposal "Be adopted and sent to the president".
Democrat Bob Menendez, number two of the Foreign Affairs Committee, went in the same direction, beckoning for adoption in the Senate. "Chinese Government and Communist Party Work to Systematically Eradicate Cultural and Ethnic Identities of Uyghurs and Other Muslim Minorities in Xinjiang"said Rubio.
In October, the United States had already placed 28 blacklisted government and commercial organizations in China, including video surveillance companies, accusing them of being involved in the police crackdown campaign in the region.
