Politics
11:34, 16-Nov-2018
China reiterates Xinjiang is an open region, welcomes ambassadors with goodwill
Updated
10:36, 19-Nov-2018
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"I would like to reiterate that Xinjiang is an open region that welcomes those who go there with goodwill. Anyone harboring malicious intentions and prejudice, and seeking to interfere in China's internal affairs, will be firmly rejected," China's Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying said.
She made the remarks at a regular press conference Thursday, responding to Reuters reports that 15 ambassadors to China have presented a letter to seek an audience with Xinjiang's local authority.
"I have not seen the letter and do you think it is meaningful for 15 ambassadors to write such a letter?" Hua asked.
Over 100 million visits have been made to Xinjiang either over the past year or in the first three quarters of this year and China always welcomes ambassadors who want to go to Xinjiang with goodwill, but for those who want to pressure the local government, "that would be problematic," Hua said.
Trying to pressure the Chinese side by raising these demands in a co-signed letter is "very rude and unacceptable," she added.
"There has never been any problem for the western diplomats and reporters traveling to Xinjiang."
The spokeswoman noted that certain western diplomats claimed that they would go to Xinjiang for the so-called "investigation on the human rights conditions" there, which is above and beyond the duties of a diplomat and exceeds their mandate under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.
"So we will by no means allow them to do so," she added.
On the so-called "re-education centers" by Western media, Hua reiterated that they are vocational education and training institutions.