UN human rights chief begins contentious China visit

BEIJING AFP May23, 2022 -The UN human rights chief began a six-day trip to China on Monday that will include the remote Xinjiang region, stirring fears over access and the propaganda value the visit offers to the Chinese Communist Party.   

The tour by Michelle Bachelet marks the first by the UN’s top rights official in nearly two decades and comes as Beijing stands accused of widespread abuses of Muslims in far-western Xinjiang.   

The ruling Communist Party is alleged to have detained over 1 million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities there under a years-long security crackdown, the United States calls a “genocide”.China vociferously denies the accusations..     “I look forward to the exchanges I will have with many different people during my visit. I will be discussing some very important issues and sensitive issues. I hope this will help us build confidence,” Bachelet said at a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Guangzhou.