Cabinet successfully opposed a Federal Court petition that it formally sanction China as genocidal. According to Blacklock's Reporter, a judge rejected the petition by lawyers acting on behalf of minority Uyghur Muslims held in Chinese slave camps..“The Uyghur Rights Advocacy Project is challenging Canada’s failure to act,” wrote Justice Alan Diner. “However, Canada has not implemented any policy about whether to act or not. Rather it has decided not to act.”.Lawyers representing thousands of Muslims interned in China asked that Justice Diner find cabinet in breach of the United Nations Convention On The Prevention And Punishment Of The Crime Of Genocide. Canada ratified the pact back in 1952..“By its acts and omissions the Government of Canada is violating its international obligations by failing to prevent the ongoing genocide in that region thereby contributing to crimes committed against the Uyghur population here and abroad,” wrote lawyers. The group sought “a declaration that the crime of genocide is currently being committed” in China..The Department of Justice argued the petition should be dismissed since “it raises issues that are not justiciable due to their political nature.” Justice Diner agreed. “The mere potential existence of a genocide does not automatically ground proceedings before the Court,” he wrote..The ruling was released yesterday as the Commons took up debate on a private motion asking that cabinet formally acknowledge China has committed crimes against humanity. Motion 62 sponsored by Liberal MP Sameer Zuberi (Pierrefonds-Dollard, QC) asked that the Government of Canada acknowledge Uyghurs “face the serious risk of mass arbitrary detention, mass arbitrary separation of children from their parents, forced sterilization, forced labour, torture and other atrocities.”.MPs in 2021 by a unanimous 266-0 vote passed a Conservative motion censuring China for genocide. “Cabinet in a cowardly gesture abstained from voting on that motion,” Bloc Québécois MP Denis Trudel (Longueuil-St. Hubert, QC) yesterday told the Commons. “Will we be complicit in the crimes being committed or will we help these people?” he asked..“The word ‘genocide’ is not one to be used lightly,” said Conservative MP Ziad Aboultaif (Edmonton Manning, AB). “If we don’t act now, when will we?” he added..Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (Papineau, QC) earlier told reporters that cabinet must be cautious in stating China is a criminal state. “When it comes to the application of the very specific word ‘genocide’ we simply need to ensure that all the I’s are dotted and the T’s are crossed,” said Trudeau..“It’s a word that is extremely loaded.”
