Australia’s Foreign Minister Marise Payne has said that concerns over internment camps in China’s far west, will be raised when she visits Beijing this week. The visit is the first by an Australian foreign minister in almost three years. Nearly a million people are being held without charge  in huge facilities in Xinjiang.

Beijing has defended the facilities, saying they are “vocational education and training centres” and are part of its efforts to combat terrorism in the region.

Australian foreign affairs officials have said that three Australians were detained in camps in Xinjiang last year before being released. China is expected to face concerns about the camps as it undergoes its periodic review by the UN Human Rights Council.