China says French claims on Uighur rights are ‘lies’

French claims about the imprisonment of ethnic and religious minorities in China's Xinjiang region were unacceptable, Beijing said yesterday, criticising the accusations as "false".

China's response came a day after Paris demanded it let independent human rights observers visit the northwestern region, where rights groups and experts estimate over one million Uighurs and other Turkic-speaking minorities have been rounded up into a network of internment camps.

France's foreign affairs minister Jean-Yves le Drian said China's actions were "unacceptable" and said they "condemn them firmly".

Beijing has defended its strategy in Xinjiang as necessary to avoid extremism.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told a regular press briefing yesterday that "China has repeatedly responded to and clarified false reports and accusations on Xinjiang-related issues".