Greg Miller, Jelena Ćosić and Tamsin Lee-Smith
Hundreds of human rights organizations make their way to the United Nations’ offices in Geneva each year to call attention to the plight of the world’s most vulnerable populations, including victims of war, famine, false imprisonment or torture.
But dozens of self-described nongovernmental organizations active in Geneva have hidden ties to the Chinese government and have taken part in an expansive campaign to subvert the work of the U.N. Human Rights Council, according to the findings of an investigation by The Washington Post and other news organizations working in partnership with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ).
Beijing-backed groups crowd into U.N. sessions on human rights to present glowing accounts from China, which are at odds with credible reports of repression, according to interviews and an examination of public records. Their delegates seek to disrupt or drown out the testimony of legitimate NGOs on their findings about the detention of Muslim Uyghurs in internment camps in the Chinese region of Xinjiang, children separated from Tibetan families or the targeting of democracy activists in Hong Kong.
Increasingly, the Beijing-controlled organizations are being used to monitor and intimidate those planning to testify about alleged abuses, according to interviews with U.S. officials, Western diplomats and members of NGOs being targeted. Several activists described being photographed or harassed while on U.N. premises.
No comments:
Post a Comment