China’s Defiance: U.S. Research Company Banned as Beijing Stands Firm on Xinjiang Human Rights Report

A U.S. research business and two analysts who extensively reported on Uyghur and other Muslim minority human rights violations in Xinjiang, China’s far northwestern province, have been banned. China is resisting international criticism of its treatment of ethnic and religious minorities in Xinjiang.

‘China will not flinch’: Foreign ministry bans U.S. research company that reported on alleged human rights abuses in Xinjiang (Photo: Google)

Retaliatory Measures: China Sanctions U.S. Entities Reporting on Xinjiang Human Rights Abuses

According to spokesperson Mao Ning, the Chinese Foreign Ministry has placed travel bans and asset freezes on Los Angeles-based research and data analytics firm Kharon, its director of investigations, Edmund Xu, and Center for Advanced Defense Studies human rights analyst Nicole Morgret. They reported on Uyghur and other Muslim minority human rights abuses in Xinjiang, prompting these sanctions. The penalties restrict Chinese businesses and people from doing business with the prohibited firms.

Kharon, Xu, and Morgret were sanctioned in retribution for an annual U.S. human rights report on Xinjiang. Resentment has grown among Uyghurs and other aboriginal tribes due to Chinese Communist Party domination and assimilation. Morgret’s June 2022 report addressed China’s industrialization of Xinjiang to assimilate Uyghurs through forced labor regimes.

China denies the charges, but former captives have described brutal circumstances and forced cultural aversion. China says its extremism-fighting camps have been shuttered, but sources say former detainees have earned long prison sentences abroad. Despite global criticism, Mao said China would reply in kind if the US did not shift direction.

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Global Tensions and Internal Crackdowns: U.S. Imposes Punishments, Hong Kong Restricts Freedoms

The U.S. has imposed visa restrictions and other punishments on Chinese officials, while Hong Kong has cracked down on free speech and democracy. These steps may be intended to purge personnel accused of working with foreign countries or being unpatriotic to Chinese leader Xi Jinping, who has consolidated power like Mao Zedong.

Xu and Morgret have not replied to the sanctions, and their relationship with the U.S. is unknown. Reporting on Xinjiang, where Uyghurs and other minorities are prohibited, is difficult.

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