9(b)B4-0289, 0296, 0311, 0323 and 0320/97

Resolution on the human rights situation in Eastern Turkestan (Region of Xinjiang)

The European Parliament,

- having regard to its previous resolutions on human rights violations in China,

A. deeply concerned by the increasing instability in eastern Turkestan (Region of Xinjiang),

B. alarmed at the arrests carried out by the Chinese authorities on 20 March in eastern Turkestan, which is predominately Islamic, following ethnic unrest,

C. alarmed also by the execution of many Uighurs by the Chinese authorities which triggered riots during which hundreds of other people were arrested,

D. denouncing the use of violence, such as bombs, by whichever side,

E. noting that in Eastern Turkestan (the region of Xinjiang) freedom of religion is severely repressed and that last year over 100 Koranic schools were closed down and 180 Muslim clerics, professors and students arrested,

F. having regard to the concerns expressed by the United Nations Committee regarding racial discrimination against the Uighur people,

G. noting that ever since the massacre in Tiananmen Square in 1989, the EU has traditionally backed resolutions on China in the UN Human Rights Commission, and deploring the lack of a common EU policy on China in Geneva this year,

1. Condemns the policy pursued by the People's Republic of China which is designed to eradicate the culture of the Uighur people and suppress the practice of their Islamic faith, a policy which includes the indiscriminate use of the death penalty, population transfers and population control through a birth policy aimed at changing the ethnic composition of this region;

2. Calls on the Chinese authorities to release forthwith all prisoners who were arrested for allegedly taking part in the riots but have not been charged with any crime corresponding to international standards and to guarantee the right to a public hearing, the right to defence and the right to be represented by a lawyer, as provided for in the modified Chinese Code of Criminal Procedure in force since 1 January 1997;

3. Calls on the Chinese Government to start a political dialogue with all parties involved in the eastern Turkestan (Region of Xinjiang) issue, in order to find a politically negotiated settlement of the various demands of the Uighur people;

4. Urges the Chinese government to allow journalists and human rights' monitors access to Eastern Turkestan (the Xinjiang region);

5. Calls on the Commission and the Council to bring pressure to bear on the authorities of the People's Republic of China to ensure that respect for human rights and fundamental rights is guaranteed both on Chinese territory and in the annexed territories;

6. Deplores the fact that the Council has not yet managed to adopt a common position aimed at ensuring the adoption by the UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva of a resolution on the human rights situation in China, Tibet, inner Mongolia and Eastern Turkestan (the Xinjiang region) and calls on the Member States to support the resolution already tabled;

7. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission, the Council, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the Government of the People's Republic of China, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization, Uighur organizations in both Europe and Kazakhstan and the Ambassador of the People's Republic of China to the European Union.