Pakistan consulate in China tweets on 'freedom' of Uyghur community, Islamabad clarifies

Islamabad: Pakistan has backtracked on a tweet from the official handle of Pakistan Consulate General Chengdu, which stated that the country would "work closely on matters of mutual interest including the Rights and Freedom of the Uyghurs community." The tweet, which also thanked China for support to flood victims, was seen as the first instance of Pakistan coming out in support of the Uyghur community, a predominantly Turkic-speaking ethnic group primarily in China's northwestern region of Xinjiang which has faced "serious human rights violations" from Beijing.

(A screenshot of the now-deleted tweet)

The UN has previously released a report which stated that China is responsible for "serious human rights violations" in Xinjiang province and that mass detentions in China's Xinjiang region from 2017 to 2019 were marked by credible documentation of "torture, sexual violence, and forced labour, as well as forced abortions and sterilization."

Also Read: China imposing forced inter-ethnic marriages on Uyghur women, says report

'Account hacked': Pakistan backtracks on tweet

However, hours after the tweet, Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson stated that the Twitter account of the Pakistan Consulate General Chengdu, China "has been hacked." The spokesperson went on to say that "any tweet or message issued from this account is not made by the Pakistan Consulate General Chengdu nor does it reflect the position of the Government of Pakistan."

The Twitter account of the Consulate General of Pakistan in Chengdu ‘@PakinChengdu’ has been hacked. As of today, any tweet or message issued from this account is not made by the Pakistan Consulate General in Chengdu, nor does it reflect the position of the Government of Pakistan — Pakistan Embassy China (@PakinChina_) January 14, 2023

Human Rights violations against Uyghurs

China has been accused for years of detaining more than one million Uyghurs and other Muslims in Xinjiang region. China has vehemently rejected these charges, insisting it is running vocational centers designed to curb extremism. UN human rights experts have raised serious concerns about the alleged detention and forced labor of Muslim Uyghurs in China, calling for unhindered access to the country to conduct fact-finding missions and urging global and domestic companies to closely scrutinize their supply chains.

(With agency inputs)