China claims ‘success at this stage’ of Xinjiang internment camps amid global outcry

Third white paper in five months on controversial policies in the region says there have been no terror attacks for three years as a result of programme

It also repeats claim that ‘most’ people have been released after completing training, without giving numbers, in latest response to international criticism

Reading Time:3 minutes

A high-security facility near what is believed to be a re-education camp where mostly Muslim minorities are detained, on the outskirts of Hotan in Xinjiang. Photo: AFP

Published: 10:00pm, 16 Aug 2019Updated: 3:57pm, 17 Aug 2019

Beijing has hailed the success of its internment camps – officially described as “vocational training centres” – in countering terrorism, in a third white paper in five months seeking to explain its controversial policies in the far western Xinjiang region.

The government’s defence comes amid a growing international outcry over the network of internment camps, where United Nations experts have said more than 1 million ethnic Uygurs and other Muslim minorities were being held for political indoctrination. Former detainees have said they were subjected to abuse and torture at the camps.

In the document published on Friday, titled “Vocational education and training in Xinjiang”, the central government press office said the region had seen no terrorist attacks in the past three years as a result of the programme.

“We have achieved significant success at this stage – the measures used in Xinjiang should warrant respect and understanding from the international community,” the white paper said.

It also repeated a claim made by senior Xinjiang officials last month that “most” of the “trainees” had been released after completing their studies, which it said improved awareness of the legal system and eliminated “extreme religious thoughts”. But the white paper did not say how many people had finished the “training” or been released.