Tuesday, 11 May 2021 12:00

Rock and a hard place

Written by Milking It

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OPINION: Appease the Chinese and protect your export trade, like dairy products, or infuriate them and face sanctions.

That's the dilemma facing the NZ Government as the treatment of Uyghur Muslims in China comes under scrutiny by our politicians. The ACT Party intends to put a motion to Parliament this week to debate the treatment of the Muslims.

The ACT Party says many of the recent reports from Xinjiang amount to genocide. But Labour and National aren't keen to use the 'G' word and sending Beijing into a fit of rage.

Trade Minister Damien O'Connor says the Chinese Government "clearly" would not like it if Parliament declared the treatment as genocide.

A conundrum then as the NZ Government is already facing criticism from our Five Eyes partners for appearing soft on China. Notice though, those same partners have dragged their feet when it comes to trade deals with us.

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