Uyghur leaders have admitted that it was a crushing blow when the UN Human Rights Council rejected a motion last week to hold a debate on alleged human rights abuses by China against Muslim Uyghurs in Xinjiang.

The vote among the 47 members was 19 against, 17 in favour, and 11 abstentions, including Malaysia. This was only the second time in the council's 16-year history that a motion has been rejected and was deemed an unprecedented victory for Beijing.

The Western-led motion had demanded a debate on the alleged rights abuses against Muslim Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in China's western Xinjiang region.

“This is a tragic issue for us. Personally, I don’t even know if my mother or father is alive or not. We feel that China tried to manipulate the system and it worked.

“Still we brought the issue to the UN Human Rights Council votes, and to lose by...