UNPO, 13 June 2014

Brussels — The Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization will convene a conference entitled ‘Are Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities Just Pawns on the Geopolitical Chessboard?’ at the Bavarian State Parliament in Munich, Germany on 27 June 2014 in collaboration with the World Uyghur Congress and the International Campaign for Tibet.

In light of the increasingly alarming situation various regions are facing in the People’s Republic of China, and Crimea in Ukraine, the conference aims to provide a better understanding of the geopolitical complexities that shape the lives of ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities in the mentioned regions. To address these issues, international experts, community representatives, academics and high-ranking politicians will come together to share their insights and expertise, bearing in mind that both Crimean Tatars and Uyghurs live in geopolitically strategic locations, and incidentally face escalating discrimination and oppression emanating from various geographical, political and economic factors underpinning regional security challenges.

The timely conference will give high-level speakers an opportunity to discuss and analyze how China’s attempts to cement its economic achievements and global leadership status are interlinked with a sharp rise in insecurity, political tensions, and anti-minority policies in East Turkestan (‘Xinjiang’) and Tibet. To address the example of the geostrategic Crimea, notable speakers will look at how Ukraine’s plunge into political chaos has left the Crimean Tatars in a disparately insecure situation, while old Cold War exploit the occasion to wage a battle to expand their spheres of economic, commercial, military and political influence in the region.

You can find the PDF verion of the Press Release here.