German Foreign Minister wants to address the situation of Uyghurs in Beijing

Berlin / Beijing (APA / DPA) – German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas has made it clear, despite warnings from China's interference in internal affairs, that he wants to address the situation of the Uighurs during his inaugural visit.

"Of course, we will also exchange views on topics for which we have different points of view," he said Sunday in Berlin before heading for an inaugural two-day visit to Beijing. "A strong and historically developed relationship – such as that between Germany and China – can also last."

During a debate in the Bundestag, MEPs on Thursday denounced the human rights violations of the Muslim Uyghur ethnic group in Xinjiang Province. The Chinese Embbady in Berlin then accused parliament and the government of "blatant interference in domestic affairs and a flagrant violation of China's sovereignty". The UN Human Rights Council has sharply criticized China for its relations with Uighurs, of whom ten million live in Xinjiang Province.

According to unconfirmed reports, nearly one million members of the Turkish people would be in re-education camps. Beijing justifies its actions against the extremist currents of Xinjiang and blames the Uyghurs for bloody riots and terrorist attacks.

Maas pointed out, despite Beijing's criticisms, the importance of German-Chinese relations. "One thing is clear: there is no way around China to solve many global problems," he said. "China is more than our largest trading partner in Asia, so it is of strategic importance for us to have strong and resilient communication channels with Beijing."

This applies in particular to issues for which Germany wants to strengthen itself in the UN Security Council, such as strengthening humanitarian aid workers, but also the problems of climate change, said Maas . "It is therefore good that we can continue the strategic dialogue between China and Germany in the next two days." Germany has been sitting since early 2019 for two years, most notably with China's permanent member of the UN Security Council, the most important body of the United Nations. Nations.

Maas is received in Beijing by main hosts. On Monday, he meets Vice Premier Liu He for the first time. This should also go to the trade dispute between China and the United States. After meeting with representatives of the business community, Maas would like to meet later with State Councilor for Foreign Affairs Yang Jiechi.

Tuesday, Maas and his Chinese colleague Wang Yi will hold a reception with Vice President Wang Qishan, also responsible for foreign affairs and very close to the head of state and party Xi Jinping. On the economic front, the discussions will focus on digitization and mobility.

The Chinese Embbady had announced on Friday that she was "extremely unhappy" with the Bundestag's view of the Uyghurs' situation and the implicit consequences for the case according to which Berlin's critics did not agree. would not mitigate. It is hoped that the German side will take the protest seriously, "in order to ensure that German-Chinese relations continue to develop in the right direction".

Michael Brand (CDU), human rights spokesman for the Union faction, criticized Spiegel Online: "The German parliament does not threaten and certainly does not dictate what it has to discuss or not." Brand and the chairman of the Human Rights Committee, Gyde Jensen (FDP) asked Maas to point out that this interference by Beijing in the free debate in Germany was unacceptable. Margarete Bause, a green human rights activist, is said to have been called by an embbady employee, who reportedly dispelled the dissatisfaction of the Chinese. "As a freely elected representative of the German Bundestag, I protect myself against such interference as well as against reminders or even related threats," Bause said afterwards.

China had long denied the existence of alleged Muslim re-education camps in Xinjiang, and in October they were legalized by law. Thus, the detention of suspects is allowed without trial or "ideological education against extremism, psychological treatment and behavioral corrections". This action is part of the intensified campaign by the state against the Uyghurs, who are based in the former East Turkestan.

The region is considered a source of conflict because of tensions between Uighurs and Han Chinese. In the context of bloody riots and several terrorist attacks, security forces are repressing. Uighurs complain of oppression, while Chinese accuse them of separatism. After their takeover in Beijing in 1949, the Communists had incorporated the region of the People's Republic.