EU Statement at the 36th Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council
Item 4 – Human Rights situation that require the Council’s attention
19 September 2017
(…)
While acknowledging the progress made on a number of areas of social and economic rights, including in poverty reduction, the EU calls for China to abide by its international law obligations, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to respect the rights of all citizens as recognised by China’s Constitution. The EU regrets the death of nobel peace laureate Liu Xiaobo while still in custody and calls on China to lift all restrictions on family members. The EU is concerned about the lack of transparency and respect for due process in the cases of detained human rights lawyers and calls China to ensure a fair trial for individuals detained for their human rights activities. The EU closely follows the cases of Jiang Tianyong, Wang Quanzhang, Tashi Wangchuk and Wu Gan in this respect. The EU urges China to implement its law on the management of foreign NGO activities in ways that do not hamper the development of independent civil society. The EU also calls upon China to respect cultural diversity and freedom of religion, not least in Tibet and Xinjiang.”
(…)