In the muffled sound of a pen stroke on a sheet of paper, Beijing eventually yielded to pressure from the international community. The China on Wednesday ratified the international conventions of the International Labor Organization (ILO), which in particular prohibit forced labour. This signature was a condition set by the European Union for that of a bilateral investment agreement, to be negotiated at the end of 2020, accusing China of using forced labor in Xinjiang. In February, an ILO expert committee expressed “deep concern” about the treatment of ethnic and religious minorities in China, particularly in this predominantly Muslim province.
According to human rights organizations at least a million Uyghurs and members of other Muslim ethnicities are or are incarcerated in camps in this region of northwest China. Beijing, for its part, says these are vocational training centers designed to keep them away from terrorism and separatism. ILO experts then demanded that the Chinese government “refocus the mandate of vocational training and education centers”, which are currently “centers of political re-education based on administrative detentions”.
H&M boycotted in China, leaders sanctioned in Europe
The subject is of concern to the international community. So a law that prohibits the purchase of products that would come from Uyghur forced labour entered into force in the United States in December 2021, accusing China of genocide against this minority. Beijing strenuously rejects this accusation, which has forced some multinational companies to pledge not to supply Xinjiang. Last year, Swedish clothing giant H&M faced a boycott of its stores in China after it pledged not to buy cotton from Xinjiang.
The controversy led Europeans to mention the issue of forced labor in the investment protection agreement they reached with Beijing on December 31, 2020. In this text, which is supposed to protect European investments in China, Beijing promised to “work towards the ratification of the fundamental conventions of the ILO, including those (forbidden) forced labour”, had stated at the time. Brussels† Ratification of the agreement has since stalled, following mutual sanctions passed by Europe and China over the Xinjiang issue last year.
In March 2021, the European Union, together with the UNITED STATESand Canada have sanctioned four leaders and one entity from this Chinese region. In response, Beijing retaliated with sanctions against a dozen European personalities, including five elected members of the European Parliament, who were accused of “spreading lies”.
The ratification of the ILO conventions therefore puts an end to these sanctions and a gloss over relations between Westerners and Chinese, while Michelle Bachelet, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, is due to go to the Middle Kingdom next month. During this visit, a visit to Xinjiang is on the program.
