Johnson Sees Off Vote on U.K. Courts Deciding China Genocide

Members of Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party reacted with anger after his government blocked their attempt to force a vote on allowing U.K. courts to rule on genocide.

Rebel Tory MPs, who are seeking to highlight the plight of Uighur Muslims in China, planned to use a debate on a Trade Bill on Tuesday to add a clause that would scupper deals with any country found by British courts to have committed genocide.

But, concerned by a vote last month that only narrowly avoided a government defeat, ministers put forward a compromise plan to dilute any rebellion and bundled two amendments together to avoid the possibility of a vote.

Johnson Moves to Block U.K. Courts Deciding Cases of Genocide

“Last week we all remembered the atrocities of the Holocaust, vowed to learn the lessons of the past and all stood up to say ‘never again’ must we let this happen anywhere in the world,” Tory MP Bob Blackman said in an email. “Today was Parliament’s chance to make ‘never again’ a reality yet instead the government has chosen to deny a clear majority of the House of Commons a chance to vote. Genocide is not a game and ‘Global Britain’ should be above this political gamesmanship.”

China denies any accusations of human rights abuses against its Uighur minority.