ePetition details

Terminate Sheffield’s sister city relationships with Anshan and Chengdu in China

We the undersigned petition the council to terminate Sheffield’s sister city relationships with Anshan and Chengdu in China.

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) government has been violating human rights and universal values, and do not adhere to international rules of conduct. From the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre, the ongoing Uyghur genocide, the demise of Hong Kong's autonomy, the persistent military threat against Taiwan, to its support of Putin’s invasion in Ukraine, the CCP completely displays its totalitarianism nature.

The establishment of the sister city agreement was intended to be a diplomatic strategy to promote economic activities and cultural exchange, based on genuine exchanges for mutual benefits. However, the CCP has manipulated this form of diplomacy to spread its hegemonic propaganda. This has triggered a wave of closures of the Confucius Institutes across Europe, America, and recently a debate on education bill in the UK parliament. Besides, nearly half of the Swedish cities have already terminated their sister city agreement with China over the past 5 years.

With all these evidences of China spreading totalitarianism, we shudder to continue the “sister city” relationship between Sheffield and Anshan & Chengdu in China. This is a matter of safeguarding human rights and aligning with the values of Sheffield as a City of Sanctuary

Started by: Clara Cheung

This ePetition ran from 04/10/2022 to 25/11/2022 and has now finished.

155 people signed this ePetition.