Written answers

Wednesday, 23 October 2019

Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

Human Rights

Photo of Tommy BroughanTommy Broughan (Dublin Bay North, Independent)
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87. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the recent responses by him and his EU colleagues to the actions of the Chinese Government and its appointees in Hong Kong and in Xinjiang, that is, the Uighur community under Chinese rule in north-west China. [43766/19]

Photo of Simon CoveneySimon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The protection and promotion of universal human rights is one of Ireland's core foreign policy issues, and we, along with our European counterparts, consistently raise our concerns with regard to the human rights situation in China.

With regards to the situation in Hong Kong, as I have noted previously in this House, Ireland fully supports fundamental freedoms such as the freedom of assembly and the right to peaceful demonstration. We have called for these freedoms to be upheld, while encouraging all sides to refrain from violence and to engage in an inclusive dialogue. Ireland's Consul General and the EU Office in Hong Kong continue to engage with the Hong Kong authorities in relation to the ongoing developments there. 

The EU, with the support of Ireland, has also issued statements in response to developments in Hong Kong, the most recent of which was released on the 2 October by High Representative Mogherini on behalf of the EU. This statement reiterated the EU position that the right of assembly must be upheld, while peaceful demonstrations must be ensured. It recalled the EU’s support for the “one country, two systems” principle, and welcomed recent steps toward dialogue by the Hong Kong authorities.

During the most recent session of the Human Rights Council on 10 September, the EU also expressed support for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights' call for the demonstrations to remain peaceful and for the respect of fundamental rights and freedoms, including the freedom of assembly.

With regards to the situation in Xinjiang, Ireland and the EU have raised this issue consistently in a bilateral context with our Chinese counterparts.  Ireland and the EU regularly raise human rights concerns at multilateral level, in particular at the Human Rights Council. During the Human Rights Council session in June this year, Ireland was one of 22 states that signed a letter which called for China to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms in Xinjiang Province, and to allow unrestricted access to independent observers. Ireland also participated in China’s Universal Periodic Review last November, where we expressed concern at reports of the treatment of ethnic Uighurs and urged China to respect freedom of religion and belief. 

In April this year, the EU raised human rights concerns with China at both the annual EU-China Summit and the EU-China Human Rights Dialogue. During this dialogue the EU noted that while actions to counter terrorism are essential, such measures must respect the principle of proportionality, fundamental freedoms and international laws. The EU raised the system of political re-education camps and called on China to allow meaningful, unsupervised and unrestricted access to Xinjiang for independent observers, including for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and UN Special Procedures.

Ireland and the EU will continue to raise these issues during both political and official contacts with the Chinese authorities in appropriate fora. 

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