Press Release – For immediate release
8 March 2012
Contact:  World Uyghur Congress www.uyghurcongress.org
0049 (0) 89 5432 1999 or [email protected]

The World Uyghur Congress (WUC) is pleased to announce that in May 2012, WUC´s 4th General Assembly (14 – 17 May), as well as the 6th Leadership training Seminar (18 – 20 May) will be held in Tokyo, Japan. The WUC expects around 100 Uyghur delegates from around the world to attend both events. Leaders of different Japanese political parties, Members of Parliament, and government officials as well as the representatives of international human rights organizations will be invited to the Opening Ceremony.

The Opening Ceremony will take place on 14 May at the Japanese Parliament and is open to the public.

During the 4^th WUC General Assembly, the new WUC leadership will be elected by the delegates and the WUC activity and financial reports will be discussed. Delegates will further develop the working strategy to raise the Uyghur legitimate cause for freedom and democracy in the international fora.

The two and a half days Leadership Training Seminar, tailored to the members of the Uyghur diaspora, will be jointly organised by the WUC and the Japanese Uyghur Association (JUA), with the kind support by a grant from the National Endowment for Democracy (NED). The training seminar will reinforce and build on past training workshops, and provide the Uyghur community with the knowledge and capacity necessary to raise awareness of the Uyghur issue outside of China. This year´s seminar will also focus on training participants on how to use new media to build social networks and to improve Internet security. Experienced activists, both from the Uyghur community and other invited guests from the wider NGO community, will lead the workshop sessions. The WUC will invite journalists, bloggers, and website managers to discuss the issues of new media and Internet security.

Since 2007, the World Uyghur Congress has annually organized one Leadership Training Seminar with the sponsorship of NED and in collaboration with UNPO (Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization) in the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, the US, and Australia.

About the WUC:

The WUC is an international organization that represents the collective interest of the Uyghur people both in East Turkestan and abroad. The WUC was established on 16 April 2004 in Munich, Germany after the East Turkestan National Congress and the World Uyghur Youth Congress merged into one united organisation. The main objective of the WUC is to promote the right of the Uyghur people to use peaceful, nonviolent, and democratic means to determine the political future of East Turkestan. The second General Assembly was held in Munich, Germany in 2006. The 3^rd General Assembly took place in 2009 in Washington, DC USA.

More information on both events will be available soon at www.uyghurcongress.org