15 Nations condemn China’s human rights violations at UN

Fifteen countries have issued a joint statement at the 80th United Nations General Assembly’s(UNGA) Third Committee, openly condemning China’s grave and systematic human rights violations within its borders and beyond. The countries includes Australia, Israel, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Ukraine, the United States, and the United Kingdom. The statement accused the Chinese authorities of running an extensive architecture of repression involving mass arbitrary detentions, forced labour, invasive surveillance, and restrictions on religious and cultural freedoms. The coalition also drew attention to Hong Kong, warning that the city’s rule of law and freedoms have been severely undermined under Beijing’s control.Citing “credible reports,” the signatories highlighted a longstanding pattern of abuses against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities, Tibetans, Christians, Falun Gong practitioners, and additional vulnerable groups.

Particularly alarming, the countries noted, are practices such as the forced separation of children from families through state-run boarding schools, torture of detainees, and the destruction of cultural and religious heritage sites; such actions, the statement said, violate fundamental human rights and China’s obligations under international law. Beyond physical repression, the countries voiced concern over the extensive use of digital tools to monitor and silence dissent. “Online and offline,” the statement read, “state censorship and surveillance are used to control information, limit public discourse, and punish those who challenge official narratives.” The targeting of journalists, human rights defenders, and lawyers, combined with transnational repression, has created a “climate of fear designed to silence criticism,” the governments warned.

Calling for urgent action, the coalition demanded the immediate and unconditional release of all individuals detained for exercising fundamental rights, and urged UN members to hold China accountable through international legal mechanisms.