Does MP Buon Tan have problematic ties to China?

In January 2022, the National Assembly passed a resolution that recognizes the genocidal nature of China’s treatment of Uyghurs. All the deputies present voted for it, except Buon Tan, deputy for Paris (LREM). This politician has often accompanied French delegations to China, but he also went there for personal reasons. In 2019, he was invited by the Overseas Chinese Friendship Association, and he met with President Xi Jinping.

This body is close to the political power. “These are organizations that must obtain the approval of the Chinese government for their creation, but also for their operation”, explains Jean-Louis Rocco, professor at Sciences Po, researcher at the Center for International Research and specialist in China. Buon Tan assures that his links with the Chinese association are not problematic. “I am not a member of this association, I have never paid a membership fee”, he says. According to the High Authority for Transparency in Public Life, the MP is in good standing. Regarding the Uyghurs, Buon Tan believes that politicians should not decide what is genocide and do not condemn the Chinese regime.