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As the Beijing Winter Olympics approaches, Japan’s parliament passed a resolution on the “severe human rights situation” in China, calling on Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s government to take action to alleviate the situation.
Following a US-led diplomatic boycott over worries over China’s human rights situation, Japan has already indicated it will not send a government delegation to the Games, but Tokyo has resisted labelling its decision as such.
Since assuming office in October, Kishida has stated repeatedly that Japan will not mince words when dealing with China, and in November, he named former defence minister Gen Nakatani as his human rights assistant.
The international community has expressed concerns about imprisonment and religious freedom violations in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, Tibet, and Hong Kong, according to the resolution passed by the lower chamber.
“Human rights issues cannot be limited to domestic concerns,” the resolution stated, “since human rights are global ideals that should be of concern to the world community.”
“This chamber recognises the use of force to change the status quo, as symbolised by the serious human rights situation, as a threat to the international community,” it said.
Concerns about forced labour led US President Joe Biden to sign legislation in December prohibiting imports from China’s Xinjiang region. The treatment of the Uyghur Muslim minority by Beijing has been labelled as genocide by the United States.
China denies human rights violations in Xinjiang, a key cotton producer that also provides a significant portion of the world’s solar panel materials.
Although there were concerns in the government about a potential economic impact, the conservative wing of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) sought ratification of the resolution ahead of the Beijing Winter Olympics’ inauguration on Feb. 4, according to Jiji news agency.
Within the LDP, there have long been divergent viewpoints on how to deal with China. The conservative side of the party is aggressive on China policy and seen as primarily concerned with defence problems. Other members of the party have advocated for maintaining Japan’s close economic relations with its neighbour.
The legislative resolution urged the Japanese government to cooperate with the international community in dealing with the problem.
“The government should gather information to get a full picture…, monitor the serious human rights situation in collaboration with the international community, and put in place comprehensive relief measures,” it stated.
In a likely acknowledgment to close bilateral economic relations, the resolution avoided using the word “China” anywhere in the text and avoided phrases like “human rights violation,” instead using the phrase “human rights situation.”
China serves as a manufacturing powerhouse for Japan, as well as a market for everything from vehicles to construction equipment.