Responding to today’s opening of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games, Liberal Democrat Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Layla Moran MP said: “As the Olympic flame is lit today in Beijing, Liberal Democrats stand in solidarity with all those oppressed, discriminated against or persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party – from Tibet to Taiwan; from Falun Gong practitioners to human rights defenders; from Hong Kong to Xinjiang.
“No matter how opulent the stadiums or ceremonies at these Olympics, nothing the Chinese government can do will ‘sportswash’ the brutal horror taking place in Xinjiang – the persecution of the Uyghurs, which amounts to the crime of genocide.
“For the last twelve months, Liberal Democrats have called on the UK Government to boycott these Games and it is right that no British ministers or officials will be in attendance. But the Conservative Government’s continual failure to recognise the Uyghur genocide, in face of a wealth of evidence, is disgraceful.
“On the advent of these Games, it’s time for the UK Government to send the strongest possible signal – by finally declaring that what is taking place in Xinjiang is a genocide, and introducing immediate legislation to ban imports from the province.”