At a recent United Nations Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva, 11 countries including Australia, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and the United Kingdom, joined the United States in expressing concern about the deteriorating human rights situation in China.
The arrests and detention of lawyers, the increasing number of individuals whose confessions have been aired on state media prior to any indictment or judicial process, and the reports of abductions of Chinese and foreign citizens "call into serious question China's avowed commitment to the rule of law and the overall direction that China is taking," expressed U.S. Representative to the UN Human Rights Council Ambassador Keith Harper.
Ambassador Harper added that the recent abductions of Chinese and foreign citizens "cross a serious line, and call into question China's commitment to its 'one party, two systems' policy towards Hong Kong.
In a joint statement, the twelve countries called on China to uphold its laws and international commitments and support the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights' call to release all rights activists, civil society leaders, and lawyers detained for peacefully exercising their freedom of expression or for lawfully practicing their profession.
