Detention Centers in Xinjiang

Following the recent "China Cables" revelations, the Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) expects Volkswagen AG to reconsider its involvement in the Western Chinese province. "The devastating human rights violations in the region have been known for years, but VW has obviously decided to ignore them," emphasized Ulrich Delius, the STP's director. "Now, the company will finally have to let independent investigators check its activities in Xinjiang. Even a withdrawal from the region should be considered!"

The Chinese central government had started to establish an unprecedented oppression system in Xinjiang in 2017. Currently, about 1.5 million Muslim Uyghurs, Kyrgyz, and Kazakhs are locked up in camps where they are tortured and brainwashed by the Communist Party. Many Western companies, including Volkswagen, have production sites in the immediate vicinity of the camps. "How can VW produce family limousines in Urumchi if local families are arbitrarily torn apart only a few meters away from the factory gates?" Delius asked, emphasizing that looking the other way will not stop these serious human rights violations.

In April, the company's CEO, Herbert Diess, had told the BBC television network that he wasn't informed about the fact that these camps had been existing for several years. The so-called "Code of Conduct" of Volkswagen AG, which Diess signed as well, explicitly mentions respect for international human rights, stating that these rights have to be observed. "Volkswagen AG must finally start to adhere to its own principles," Delius demanded. "Now, the company will have to explain what it actually does to protect the human rights of the Uyghurs."

Header image: Anagoria via wikimedia