A major Muslim civil liberties organization in the United States has called on Tesla motors CEO Elon Musk to close a recently-opened showroom in China's Xinjiang region, saying no American corporation should be doing business in a region that is the focal point of a campaign of genocide targeting a religious and ethnic minority
In a statement, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said that Tesla must cease what amounts to economic support for genocide.
US-based Tesla opened the showroom in Xinjiang's capital Urumqi with an announcement on the Chinese social media platform Weibo.
"No American corporation should be doing business in a region that is the focal point of a campaign of genocide targeting a religious and ethnic minority," said CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper. "Elon Musk and Tesla must close this new showroom and cease what amounts to economic support for genocide."
According to media reports, Tesla has said it has begun operations in a showroom in Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang. This has drawn widespread criticism.
US lawmakers accuse China of imprisoning as many as 1.8 million Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz and members of other Muslim minority groups in a system of extrajudicial mass internment camps, where they are forced to produce textiles, electronics, food products, shoes, tea, and handicrafts.
Beijing, on the other hand, has repeatedly denied all accusations of being engaged in abuses in Xinjiang.
Meanwhile, the White House has urged private companies to oppose the human rights abuses and genocide by China in Xinjiang.
( With inputs from ANI )
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