Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office written question – answered at on 8 July 2026.
Iain Duncan Smith
Conservative, Chingford and Woodford Green
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what plans she has to discuss the Ethnic Unity and Progress Law with her Chinese counterpart.
Seema Malhotra
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities), Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
This is a concerning development in China. We note the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights' concern that this law may entrench restrictions on the rights and freedoms of ethnic minorities in a country where the environment for freedom of religion or belief is already restrictive.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has discussed this law with Chinese officials, stressing the importance that the law does not harm the rights of members of minority groups and that it is not applied extraterritorially. We will never tolerate attempts by foreign governments to coerce, intimidate, harass, or harm their critics overseas, and anyone caught assisting a foreign state to undermine our security will be brought to justice.
Yes2 people think so
No0 people think not
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