U.S. Senators Todd Young (R-IN) and Tim Kaine (D-VA) sent a letter to Pope Francis Monday asking the pontiff to use his moral authority to pressure Beijing to halt abuses of Uyghur Muslims in China.
The CCP has persecuted the Uyghur Muslim population of Xinjiang Province for years and this persecution has escalated in recent months. Meanwhile, the Vatican is renegotiating a 2018 agreement with the CCP concerning the appointment of Chinese Bishops.
“Today, we are still encountering slavery and oppression, and it is perhaps no place more extreme than what we are witnessing in Xinjiang and the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) indefensible treatment of Uyghur Muslims,” the senators wrote. “As the leader of the world’s largest institution of faith, we respectfully request that Your Holiness do all that you can to protect the most basic human rights for all people, including Uyghurs in Xinjiang.”
“The CCP has much to gain from a continued agreement with Your Holiness, and as such we believe you possess a unique opportunity to make a positive difference in how all religions and practitioners are treated by the Chinese authorities,” the letter stated.