Geneva — UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk delivered his global report on Monday during the 62nd session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva. He expressed deep concern over China’s assimilation policies, particular "ethnic Unity Law", which restricts the freedoms of language, education, practice of religion, culture, expression and assembly; and penalizing the peaceful exercise of minority rights in general. "I call for the law to be repealed and for these practices to end," he said.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk delivered his global report at the 62nd session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland, on June 15, 2026. UNHRC Chief Volker Türk said, "We face very serious human rights challenges. An unprecedented, shameless onslaught against international law is causing appalling human suffering. We must call it out, every time and everywhere, and work to contain and end it."
"I am very concerned about China’s counterterrorism and assimilation policies, particularly as they affect minorities in the Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia and Tibetan regions. The new law on ethnic unity risks deepening restrictions on freedoms of language, education, practice of religion, culture, expression and assembly; and penalizing the peaceful exercise of minority rights in general. I call for the law to be repealed and for these practices to end," said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
UNHRC Chief Volker Türk said, “Attacks against environmental human rights defenders are rising. Our latest figures show they are detained in at least 55 countries. Media censorship is growing, while freedom of expression declining in 44 countries, according to several surveys.”
“Clearly, we face very serious human rights challenges. An unprecedented, shameless onslaught against international law is causing appalling human suffering. We must call it out, every time and everywhere, and work to contain and end it,” he added.
“I encourage G7 leaders meeting across the lake to put human rights at the core of their discussions, as a force for stability and progress,” said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
The new Chinese law recently adopted by the People's Republic of China, which targets the Tibetan language, identity, culture, and religion as part of a policy of Sinicization, mandates the assimilation of Tibetans into Chinese culture through parents, monasteries, and public institutions; it will take effect on July 1, 2026.
The National People's Congress (NPC) passed a law on March 12, 2026, titled “Promotion of Ethnic Unity and Progress in the People's Republic of China (PRC).” This law reinforces policies of “Sinicization” and “assimilation,” particularly with regard to Tibetans and other oppressed peoples of Mongolia and East Turkestan. It mandates the Sinicization and assimilation of the Tibetan people, using parents, monasteries, various social organizations, and state institutions as instruments of implementation; the law is scheduled to officially take effect on July 1, 2026.
The new law aims to codify Xi Jinping’s policy on ethnic affairs, which promotes greater integration and cultural assimilation under the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) regime. It prioritizes the use of Mandarin in education, public services, and public life, thereby replacing previous policies that allowed instruction in minority languages such as Tibetan, Uyghur, and Mongolian. It also requires religious practices to align with Han-centered Chinese cultural norms and socialist values through the “Sinicization” of religion.
The law also requires parents and teachers to indoctrinate children so that they “love the CCP and China as a nation” and “internalize the idea that the Chinese people form one big family,” while warning against any attempt to instill in children concepts related to their own Tibetan culture, religion, and customs. It forces Tibetan parents to perform additional tasks during their children’s summer and winter vacations.
Following the passage of this law, criticism was voiced by the international community, academics, and human rights organizations, who stated that the law constituted an instrument of “forced assimilation” that could infringe upon the cultural, linguistic, and religious rights of Tibetans, Uyghurs, and Inner Mongolians. Some see this as a reversal of previous policies that granted only nominal regional autonomy.
Even before the new Chinese law officially took effect, Chinese authorities in Tibetan regions had already begun removing Tibetan-language signs from school gates, shops, and offices as early as March 15, 2026. These actions are evidence of the illegal and ruthless measures taken by the Chinese authorities against the Tibetan people, their language, culture, and religion, and are aimed at erasing Tibetan identity.
