Activists demand postponement of UN visit

Several activist groups have called for a postponement of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights’ visit to China. Michelle Bachelet is entering a „minefield of propaganda“ by the Chinese Communist Party, the more than 200 organizations wrote in a public appeal. The open letter, signed by Free Tibet, Hong Kong Watch and the Tibet Initiative Germany, among others, chided Bachelet for refusing all requests to meet with affected communities so far. Moreover, on the part of the U.N. high commissioner, „all offers to meet with survivors from the Uighur camps, Tibetan former political prisoners or Chinese democracy activists linked to the Tiananmen Square massacre have been ignored,“ the letter said. The organizations called for more transparency about the planned China visit and for Bachelet to agree to meet with civil society representatives. ari