Daily US Times: China has imposed sanctions on five UK MPs and for other UK citizens – for spreading what it called “lies and disinformation” about the country.
It comes in retaliation for measures taken by the British government on Monday over China’s human rights abuses against the minority Uighur Muslim group.
Sir Iain Duncan Smith is among the UK MPs targeted by Beijing, along with a lawyer, an academic and two peers.
Mr Smith said he would wear the sanctions “as a badge of honour”.
The response by Beijing follows similar sanctions imposed on the EU, which was part of the co-ordinated action along with the US, UK and Canada on Monday.
China has detained minority Uighurs at camps in the north-west region of Xinjiang province, where allegations of sexual abuse, forced labour and torture have emerged.
China has always denied all the allegations of abuse against the Uighurs, claiming the detention camps are “re-education” facilities used to combat terrorism.
The nine UK citizens facing sanctions are Tory MPs Sir Iain, Tim Loughton, Tom Tugendhat, Neil O’Brien and Nusrat Ghani; the peers Baroness Kennedy and Lord Alton; a lawyer, Sir Geoffrey Nice QC, and an academic, Jo Smith Finley.
They will all be banned from entering China, Macao and Hong Kong, Chinese citizens and institutions will be prohibited from doing business with them and their property in China will be frozen.
Former Conservative leader Sir Iain said in response of the sanctions: “It is our duty to call out the Chinese governments human rights abuses in Hong Kong and their genocide of the Uighur people.”
“I have no regrets for speaking out, and I will not be silenced,” academic Ms Smith Finley tweeted.
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