On the same day Canada helped to launch an international effort at the United Nations to demand that China allow free access to Xinjiang to investigate alleged human rights violations, China and its allies have called on the UN to investigate crimes against Indigenous people in Canada.
China’s allies include Russia, Belarus, Iran, North Korea, Syria and Venezuela. “We are deeply concerned about the serious human rights violations against the Indigenous people in Canada. Historically, Canada robbed the Indigenous people of the land, killed them and eradicated their culture,” said Jiang Duan, a senior official at China’s mission to the UN in Geneva.
“We call for a thorough and impartial investigation into all cases where crimes were committed against Indigenous people, especially the children,” Jiang said, citing the preliminary discovery last month of what are thought to be the unmarked burial sites of children’s remains adjacent to the former Kamloops residential school.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau responded Tuesday to China’s moves at the UN by stating that China have failed to even recognize historical injustices and that Canada are at least on that path. “The journey of reconciliation is a long one, but it is a journey we are on. China is not recognizing even that there is a problem. That is a pretty fundamental difference,” Trudeau told reporters.
