Exposing China’s Human Rights Charade Under Xi Jinping: Insights From China’s Fourth U.N. Universal Periodic Review and Beyond

I first heard of the United Nations Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review in detail during the International Tibet Youth Forum held at Dharamshala, where it was introduced to us by a member of the Tibet Justice Center. This, along with my eventual participation in the Asia Regional Meeting in Tokyo organized by the International Tibet Network, equipped me to participate in the India Advocacy Week in December 2023. The week was a coalition of organizations working for Tibet, namely the International Tibet Network, Students for a Free Tibet, the Tibetan Youth Congress, the National Democratic Party of Tibet, the Foundation for Non-Violent Alternatives, and the Voluntary Tibet Advocacy Group. During this event, we met and engaged with Indian parliamentarians, highlighting that China’s fourth review was about to take place.

The Universal Periodic Review is a three-hour examination of a U.N. member’s human rights record conducted by all other U.N. member states. This review mechanism was established in March 2006 by U.N. General Assembly resolution 60/251 with the aim of promoting and protecting human rights in every country. Since the first periodic review in 2008, all 193 member states have each been reviewed three times. The review process is currently in its fourth cycle, which began in November 2022.

The People’s Republic of China underwent its fourth review on January 23, 2024 at the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva. More than 21 U.N. member states raised questions and brought recommendations, shedding light on, among other abuses, the gross violations of human rights in Tibet.

INDIA CHINA TIBET RELIGION POLITICS PROTEST — A Tibetan activist stages a protest at the Chinese embassy in New Delhi on March 11, a day after the 65th Tibetan National Uprising Day against the Chinese occupation of Tibet. (Photo: AFP)

When it comes to Tibet, there was a twofold increase in the number of member nations calling out China on its human rights record compared to China’s third review in 2018. Member states that raised concerns about Tibet, shedding light on, among other abuses, the gross violations of human rights in Tibet, included the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Australia, France, Lithuania, Japan, Sweden, Norway, Austria, Switzerland, Poland, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Ireland, Montenegro, New Zealand, Canada, Denmark, Belgium and Estonia.

Even Pakistan, a close strategic ally of China, called for China to ”further intensify international cultural and religious exchanges, especially through more visits to Xinjiang and Tibet.”

Thinley Chukki, the official representative of the Dalai Lama and the Central Tibetan Administration at the Tibet Bureau in Geneva, stated that, “The colonial boarding school system, which targets the very culture and identity of Tibetans in occupied Tibet, was exposed and brought to light by many of these states, and hearing them speak on it was profound.” However, she was dismayed to hear blatant lies uttered by the Chinese representatives when addressing their human rights report to the U.N. floor. The Chinese representatives said these boarding schools were established because Tibetans lived far from their schools, when the truth is that the Chinese systematically shut down schools near Tibetans and intentionally established these boarding schools — where the main language of instruction is Mandarin — to separate young Tibetans from their families and culture, thereby cutting them off from their traditional roots.

The Chinese representatives were well prepared, as they are aware of the gross violations of human rights their country commits. Some of the tactics they utilized in the lead-up and post Universal Periodic Review included:

Hosting their own side events both before and after review sessions, both of which praised China’s human rights track record, with some participants and speakers calling out the West for the double standards it sets. On January 22, a side event titled “Putting Development at the Center of the Agenda: Safeguarding Economic, Social and Cultural Rights” took place in Geneva. On January 24, another side event titled “Human Rights and Chinese Modernization” was organized by Beijing’s China Society of Human Rights Studies. Writing in Bitter Winter regarding the latter event, Tenzin Youten, in his article “China’s Own Propaganda Side Event at the U.N. Human Rights Council,” states that “all the representatives belong to China-based institutes, established and funded by the Chinese government,” with none of these experts reporting on the Tibetan uprisings of 2008 and the Uyghurs uprisings of 2009.
Utilizing available diplomatic might, especially when it comes to nations of the Global South. This tactic was uncovered by Reuters, which saw diplomatic notes sent by Chinese missions to countries reading, “I would kindly request your delegation to render valuable support to China and make constructive recommendations in the interactive dialogue… taking into account the friendly relations and cooperation between our two countries.”
The tried and tested intimidation tactic of bringing a large delegation to occupy seats at the review session, which numbered more than 40 diplomats, complimented by a considerable number of Chinese NGOs known as GONGOs, or government-organized NGOs. This tactic was previously reported on by Kunchok Dolma Yaklha, Special Appointee for Human Rights at the Tibet Bureau in Geneva, who mentioned that in 2018, during China’s third review, her colleague Kalden Tsomo from the Tibet Bureau was screamed at by a Chinese woman to hand over seats Kalden had saved for her Tibetan colleagues. Kalden told the woman she was familiar with these intimidation tactics.
Publishing their own narratives in Chinese-owned media. This can be seen from an article titled “U.N. Human Rights Council UPR Working Group adopts Recommendations made to China,” published by Xinhua News Agency on January 27, which did not mention any of the Universal Periodic Review Working Group’s for China questions and recommendations but instead painted a rosy picture of the session. Similarly, a video taken from Xinhua was uploaded to YouTube on January 28, 2024 titled “China delivers good performance in UN Periodic Review of Human Rights,” by the channel China Human Rights. In the video, Chen Xu (陳旭), China’s ambassador to the U.N. Office in Geneva, speaking with the news anchor, said China’s Achievements in human rights won international acclaim.

Even with such gaslighting tactics, China lost face in front of an international audience when it came to its gross violations of human rights. There is a clear trend one can notice here, and that is even with China’s growing power and influence in the world, nations are gradually coming together and questioning the Chinese Communist Party more strongly than ever. This has become increasingly obvious since Xi Jinping became China’s leader, with the suppression of freedoms in Hong Kong, its use of debt traps, and the militarization of islands in the South China Sea.

Further igniting the flames of protest in the Tibetan diasporic community were the arrests of more than 1,000 Tibetans, including monks, for protesting against the construction of a dam expected to destroy six monasteries and forcefully relocate two villages in Dege County, in Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. The recently concluded Ninth International Conference of Tibet Support Groups held in Brussels came out with a statement against this crackdown in Tibet, highlighting the clear and evident duress in Tibet.

One now awaits the verdict of the U.N. report on China’s human rights, which is set to be adopted in either June or July. It remains to be seen whether it will recognize these and other ongoing human rights violations occurring in China.

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