A plan for stopping China's Uighur genocide

Although some Chinese officials will inevitably remain beyond the reach of the law, others could well fall within the jurisdiction of U.S. courts, foreign courts, or international tribunals. The U.S. Genocide Act, for example, grants American courts extraterritorial jurisdiction over genocide if the perpetrator is “present in” the United States. For this reason, the U.S. government must better understand the backgrounds of Chinese officials who step foot on American soil, as well as the businesspeople and companies facilitating the Uyghur genocide by knowingly importing products manufactured with forced labor. Although the prosecutor’s office at the International Criminal Court has said it lacks sufficient jurisdiction to open an investigation into China’s abuses, other international bodies could still hold Beijing accountable. China has ratified several human rights treaties that maintain expert bodies with the authority to comment on violations of their terms. These include the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination; the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; the Convention Against Torture; and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women. Because the United States is also a party to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, it can and should initiate a state complaint against China and encourage that convention’s committee to activate its “urgent action procedure,” which would empower it to conduct an independent investigation to document treaty violations.
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