China has imposed sanctions on a handful of US and Canadian officials in a racy response amid growing tensions over the repression of ethnic and religious minorities in Xinjiang Province.
Gayle Manchin, chair of the US Government’s Advisory Committee on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) and Sen. Joe Manchin
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Michael Chong, vice chair of the Canadian Parliament’s Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development (FAAE), and the eight members of the FAAE’s Subcommittee on International Human Rights have also been sanctioned.
“The Chinese government is committed to safeguarding its national sovereignty, security and development interests, and urges the parties concerned to clearly understand the situation and correct their mistakes,” China’s Foreign Ministry said in its announcement. the sanctions, said Reuters.
Those sanctioned by China are not allowed in China, Hong Kong or Macau, and Chinese citizens and businesses are not allowed to communicate with the individuals.
The US coordinated sanctions against China with Canada, the European Union and the United Kingdom for alleged human rights violations by China against Uyghur Muslims.
“These designations include Wang Junzheng, the secretary of the party committee of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC), and Chen Mingguo, director of the Xinjiang Public Security Bureau (XPSB),” said the Treasury Department when the sanctions were announced. “The United States is determined to use all of its financial powers to answer for the grave human rights violations in Xinjiang.”
They must stop political manipulation of Xinjiang-related issues, stop meddling in China’s internal affairs in any form, and refrain from further down the wrong path. Otherwise they will burn their fingers, ”the ministry said on Saturday, according to Reuters.
China has denied allegations of human rights violations in the country.
Some countries, including the US, have labeled China’s treatment of Uyghur Muslims as genocide.