Tommy Broughan (Dublin Bay North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

It is good to hear that our ambassador to China and the consul general in Hong Kong have been proactive on the matter. It seems clear that the Chinese authorities are not adhering to the basic law and the 1997 agreement, which was to last for 50 years. It is effectively an international agreement but China is disregarding it. The recent local elections mentioned by the Minister demonstrate the vast bulk of the 7 million people in Hong Kong want independent and democratic institutions.

The Tánaiste mentioned the UN General Assembly Third Committee, which found reports of detention of large numbers of ethnic Uighurs and other Muslim minorities. They were being held for long periods without trial and there was mass surveillance that disproportionately targeted ethnic Uighurs. We had a ludicrous statement from the Chinese authorities yesterday or earlier today that 1 million detained Uighurs have now graduated from these camps. The current position is untenable and outrageous.

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