China takes action against Canadian institutions, individuals over Uyghur, Tibet

China said on Sunday it was retaliating against two Canadian institutions and 20 people involved in human rights issues related to the Uyghurs and Tibet.

The measures that took effect Saturday include asset freezes and entry bans and targets include the Uyghur Rights Advocacy Project of Canada and the Canada-Tibet Committee, China’s foreign ministry announced on its website.

Rights groups have accused Beijing of widespread abuses against Uyghurs, a predominantly Muslim ethnic minority who number about 10 million in the western region of Xinjiang, including the widespread use of forced labor in camps. Beijing denies any abuses.

China annexed Tibet in 1950, in what it describes as “peaceful liberation” from feudal slavery. However, international human rights groups and exiles have regularly condemned China’s repressive rule of Tibetan areas.

As for both institutions, China said it was confiscating their “movable property, immovable property and other types of property within the territory of China.” It is freezing the assets in China of 15 people from the Uyghur organization and five people from the Tibet Committee, and banning their entry into China, including Hong Kong and Macau.

Calls to the Canadian Embassy in Beijing went unanswered. Reuters did not immediately receive a response from rights groups or Global Affairs Canada.