The US announced Friday that they will be imposing visa restrictions on People’s Republic of China officials due to continuing human rights violations against minority groups. The decision is underpinned by US legislation, namely Section 212 (a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
The alleged ongoing human rights violations include “the ongoing genocide and crimes against humanity in Xinjiang, the erosion of fundamental freedoms in Hong Kong, persistent human rights abuses in Tibet, and transnational repression around the world.” The US has called upon China to amend its human rights policies, stating they must:
abide by the principles enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and accept the many recommendations made this year during the Universal Periodic Review of its human rights record, including unconditionally releasing PRC nationals it has arbitrarily and unjustly detained.
On the same day, the Chinese government also announced sanctions against six US defense companies for selling arms to Taiwan, in addition to five senior management officers from the sanctioned companies. Within this year, the Chinese government announced sanctions against American defense companies repeatedly for engaging in arms trade with Taiwan, allegedly breaching the “One China” principle.
The genocide in Xingjiang against Uyghur Muslims has been reported as an attempt at cultural erasure from China. Uyghur people from 630 villages have been “detained [and] tortured” such that they have been “beat[en] with sticks, [had] fingernails pulled off, some are shackled by heavyweights, immobilized for months on end. Detained women and men have been raped and starved.”
China has also reportedly attempted to isolate Tibet from foreign nations by limiting its capacity to interact or communicate with foreign entities. Relatedly, US President Joe Biden signed into law the “Promoting a Resolution to the Tibet-China Dispute Act” which broadens the definition of Tibet to cover not only the Tibet Autonomous Region but also the Tibetan areas of other provinces. In response, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson decried that the law “grossly interferes in China’s domestic affairs” by encouraging “Tibet independence.” The spokesperson further claimed that the TAR enjoys ” social stability and harmony,” with prosperous economic development and robust wellbeing protection.
In Hong Kong, the international community is concerned with the development following the enactment of the 2020 national security law and another local national security legislation in 2024, both of which have compromised the autonomy of Hong Kong and undermined the freedoms and rights of Hong Kong people.
Last month, the EU similarly expressed concerns about “very serious human rights situation” in China Xinjiang, Tibet and Hong Kong in the 39th session of the Joint Human Rights Dialogue.
