Campaign for Uyghurs group has labeled the move by Canada’s House of Commons to adopt a non-binding motion that called on the Trudeau administration to declare the treatment of Uyghurs by Chinese authorities a genocide as ‘encouraging’.
In a statement, the group said: “This step taken by the Canadian Parliament is an encouraging step for both the Canadian Government and other governments to recognize the Uyghur Genocide, as stated by the Campaign for Uyghurs (CFU).”
The motion was adopted by Canadian Parliament in a 266-0 vote recently as Foreign Affairs Minister Marc Garneau abstained on behalf of the government. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and over 60 members of the governing Liberal Party were absent from the vote.
Canada’s Conservative Bloc Quebecois, New Democrat and Green parties voted for the motion alongside every independent parliamentarian.
The leader of Conservative Party, Erin O’Toole, whose party triggered the vote, slammed Trudeau for not participating in the vote and urged the government to respect the Parliament’s will and reiterated his appeal to boycott the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing.
Meanwhile, the Chinese ambassador to Canada, Cong Peiwu, gave a recent interview where he denied every allegation leveled against China. Peiwu made it known during the interview that every activity in the Xinjiang province is China’s internal affair, as such, Canada should not interfere.
