Ottawa - Prime Minister Mark Carney refused to characterize China's treatment of Uyghurs as genocide during a press conference Monday, breaking with a 2021 parliamentary vote and drawing immediate criticism from human rights advocates and opposition parties.
The refusal, reported by The Globe and Mail, marks a significant policy shift from Parliament's previous stance and reveals the tension between Carney's economic pragmatism honed during his years at the Bank of England and the Goldman Sachs Group, and the moral clarity demanded by human rights organizations.
When pressed by reporters about whether he would use the term genocide to describe Beijing's mass detention, forced labor, and systematic oppression of the predominantly Muslim Uyghur population in Xinjiang, Carney declined to do so, instead emphasizing the need for "constructive engagement" with China on trade and climate issues.
The refusal represents a marked departure from Canada's 2021 House of Commons vote, which passed 266-0 declaring that China's actions against Uyghurs constitute genocide. That vote saw rare parliamentary unity, with members from all parties supporting the motion—though then-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his cabinet abstained from voting.
In Canada, as Canadians would politely insist, we're more than just America's neighbor—we're a distinct nation with our own priorities. Yet Carney's position appears to prioritize economic relations with Beijing over the human rights stance that Parliament adopted three years ago, raising questions about how his government will balance trade interests with moral leadership on the global stage.
Mehmet Tohti, executive director of the Uyghur Rights Advocacy Project in , expressed dismay at the Prime Minister's position. said in a statement.
