As Prime Minister Mark Carney prepares for an official visit to the People’s Republic of China, the Green Party of Canada is joining Human Rights Watch in calling on the federal government to place human rights at the centre of Canada’s engagement.
In a statement released this week, Human Rights Watch warned that repression in China has intensified in recent years, including the persecution of human rights defenders, the dismantling of freedoms in Hong Kong, the use of forced labour in global supply chains, and the targeting of critics abroad, including within Canada.
“The Green Party of Canada is joining Human Rights Watch in urging Canada to raise China’s heightened repression directly and publicly,” said Elizabeth May, Leader of the Green Party of Canada. “Engagement with China is necessary, including on the climate crisis, but engagement must not come at the cost of abandoning human rights.”
The Prime Minister’s office has framed the visit primarily around economic resilience, trade diversification, and security cooperation. Human rights were notably absent from the government’s public messaging, a concern raised by Human Rights Watch.
“Human Rights Watch is right to warn that silence on human rights weakens Canada’s credibility,” May continued. “Canada does not strengthen its position in the world by sidelining human rights in pursuit of trade or investment.”
Human Rights Watch has documented evidence that forced labour involving Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims continues to be linked to global supply chains, including sectors relevant to the Canadian market. Canadian law prohibits the importation of goods produced using forced labour, a responsibility Human Rights Watch has urged Canada to enforce more rigorously.
“We agree with Human Rights Watch that Canada has both a legal and moral obligation to ensure our economy is not complicit in forced labour or other serious abuses,” said May. “That obligation does not disappear because a trading partner is powerful or economically significant.”
Greens also highlight growing concerns about transnational repression, in which governments target diaspora communities and critics abroad.
“As Human Rights Watch has made clear, Canadians must be able to speak freely without fear of intimidation by foreign governments,” said May. “Protecting those rights at home requires raising abuses abroad.”
The Green Party stresses that raising human rights concerns does not mean severing diplomatic ties.
“There are many reasons Canada must continue dialogue with China, including the dire need for global cooperation on climate action,” said May. “But as Human Rights Watch has emphasized, climate leadership and human rights leadership must go hand in hand. One cannot be traded for the other.”
The Green Party of Canada is calling on the Prime Minister to publicly raise concerns related to political repression, forced labour, civil society crackdowns, and transnational intimidation during his meetings in China.
“Canada’s voice matters,” said May. “We must use it clearly, consistently, and without compromise to defend human rights wherever they are under threat.”
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