World Uyghur Congress, 04 September 2020

NEWS

WUC Highlights International Day for the Victims of Enforced Disappearances

On the 30th of August, on the occasion of the International Day for Victims of Enforced Disappearances, the World Uyghur Congress published a press release to commemorate all persons worldwide who have been forcibly disappeared at the hands of oppressive regimes, their affiliated police or military personnel, or any other party who has used this practice as a tool for repression.

In particular, the press release addressed how the CCP has used enforced disappearances on many occasions against the Uyghur people, which thereby has become part of the Chinese government’s genocidal campaign to control and destroy the Uyghur ethnicity and religious beliefs in all their forms. Moreover, the WUC also expressed its deep concern for the many Uyghur refugees and asylum seekers who have been forcibly returned to China, which has often been the last time their families have heard from them. The WUC continues to urge the Chinese government to put an end to the practice of enforced disappearances, and break its cycle of silence and impunity on such cases. Furthermore, the international community should also press the CCP for clarity on the whereabouts of those disappeared and hold those responsible for cases of enforced disappearances to account.

Uyghur Tribunal Launched to Probe Accusations of Genocide

On the 3rd of September, an independent people’s tribunal was launched to judge on allegations of mass atrocities crimes committed against Uyghur and other Turkic peoples in East Turkistan. In June, Dolkun Isa, President of the World Uyghur Congress, formally requested Sir Geoffrey Nice QC, who previously led the prosecution of ex-Serbian President Milosevic to establish a people’s tribunal to investigate ‘ongoing atrocities and possible genocide’ against the Uyghur People. According to Mr. Isa, “There is no realistic possibility of these charges being considered in a formally constituted court but the Uyghur Tribunal provides an opportunity to secure an authoritative and impartial judgement.” The World Uyghur Congress has provided some initial evidence but the Tribunal will in due course invite submissions from other representatives of the wider Uyghur worldwide community and other parties. The judgement of the Uyghur Tribunal, which is expected to be delivered at the end of 2021, will result in an independent and reliable opinion on whether the whether genocide has been or is being committed by the CCP and whether it is acting in accordance with its international legal obligations. Ultimately, this will provide an important legal opinion based on which further action can be undertaken by the international community to hold China accountable for its crimes.

Uyghur Doctors Gives Testimony of Forced Abortions and Sterilizations

On 2 September, ITV News published an interview in which a Uyghur doctor gave a testimony of how she participated in at least 500 to 600 operations on Uyghur women including forced contraception, forced abortion, forced sterilization and forced removal of wombs. The Uyghur doctor has since fled to Turkey, and now speaks out on these horrific practices that the Chinese government has forced upon the Uyghur population in East Turkistan. Indeed, the testimony is important evidence that substantiates earlier accusations, such as Adrian Zenz’ report which was released in June 2020. Taken together, this growing amount of evidence paints a picture of a deliberate Chinese policy of demographic genocide that aims to reduce the number of ethnic Uyghur people.

Uyghur Woman Recounts Torture and Killings in Internment Camp

On 2 September, The Pitt News reported about a virtual event held to raise awareness about the ongoing genocide of the Uyghur people in East Turkistan, during which Mihrigul Tursun, a survivor of the internment camps in the region, told her gruesome story. Upon her return to China from Egypt, her country of residence, Tursun was immediately separated from her three children, after which she was detained by the Chinese police and being taken to an internment camp. A few days later, the police returned the dead body of Tursun’s oldest son to her. Moreover, Tursun described being questioned by the police, tortured, subjected to electric shock and physically abused for three days. Accounts like Mihrigul Tursun’s are indicative of the crimes against humanity of the Chinese government against the Uyghur people.

Increasing Use of Coercive Diplomacy by China, New Report Finds

A new report by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute has revealed how the Chinese government is increasingly resorting to the use of coercive diplomacy with foreign countries. Analyzing over 150 cases of coercive diplomacy across 28 countries over the past decade, the report concluded that China has taken advantage of the lack of a coordinated pushback from foreign governments and that these governments need to counter China’s divide-and-conquer tactics through a joint strategy via multilateral institutions. Indeed, in response to a visit from a Czech delegation to Taiwan last Sunday, Chinese foreign minister Yang Wi stated that Milos Vystrcil, head of the Czech delegation, should “pay a high price for his shortsighted behaviour”. Such examples of coercive diplomacy cannot be accepted and require a strong response from relevant EU actors.

WUC Campaigns to End Uyghur Forced Labour

On 31 August, The Guardian reported that human rights campaigners are calling on United States authorities to ban all imports of cotton from the East Turkistan region, in the face of allegations of widespread forced labour. Two identical petitions, delivered today to US Custom and Border Protection, cite “substantial evidence” that the Uyghur people and other minority groups are being forced into working in the region’s cotton fields. According to Rahima Mahmut, UK Office Director for the World Uyghur Congress, which has been one of the campaign groups spearheading the petitions, is hopeful that the economic impacts of a ban could cause Beijing to rethink its prison labour policy.

In July, the World Uyghur Congress joined a worldwide coalition to end forced labour in East Turkistan. The coalition groups issued a call to action seeking brand commitments to cut all ties with suppliers implicated in forced labour and end all sourcing from East Turkistan within twelve months.

Crackdown in East Turkistan Intensifies under Covid-19 Measures

On 1 September, Associated Press News reported that the Chinese authorities region have resorted to draconian measures to combat the Covid-19 pandemic in East Turkistan, intensifying their crackdown on Uyghur and other Turkic Muslims. Starting in mid-July, officials declared a “wartime mode” for East Turkistan, cutting the region off from the rest of China and enforcing a heavy lockdown on millions of residents. Under this intensified crackdown, residents in East Turkistan started sharing worrying pictures and videos showing people handcuffed to their homes in Urumqi, the province’s capital. Moreover, residents have been subjected to quarantines of more than 40 days, during which some residents have been forced to swallow traditional Chinese medicine, regardless of the absence of medical evidence proving its effectiveness against Covid-19. Although these new restrictions have been enforced under the guise of combating the Covid-19 pandemic, they mirror the repressive genocidal campaign of the CCP in East Turkistan, which has seen a complete lack of accountability and transparency, marked by the complete disregard for the lives and well-being of the Uyghur people.

Protests in Southern Mongolia Over Curtailing of Mongolian Language Classes

On 20 August 2020, the Southern Mongolian Human Rights Information Center reported that education authorities had informed teachers that all elementary and middle schools in Inner Mongolia had to use Mandarin Chinese as the language of instruction for three subjects starting this new school year. Inner Mongolia is a region in northern China with 17 percent ethnic minority Mongols, who speak Mongolian as their mother tongue. After the policy was leaked, international media reported widespread school boycotts and various protests breaking out throughout Inner Mongolia. Videos show students shouting slogans and walking out of schools. Authorities swiftly responded with a crackdown, detaining Mongolian activists and beating protesters. The same ban has been implemented in East Turkistan and Tibet, and the use of Uyghur and Tibetan language has been removed as a medium of teaching. Forbidding the use of a mother tongue in education violates international and Chinese law.

PARTICIPATE

End Forced Labor in East Turkistan
Interested in advocating to end forced labor in East Turkistan? The Uyghur Human Rights Project and the Uyghur American Association are holding Virtual Lobby Days this month. Interested constituents across the U.S. are welcome. Please sign up here!

The Wall of the Disappeared in Geneva
Help us highlight the individual stories of the disappeared relatives of Uyghurs in the diaspora.Send us a photo of your detained/disappeared relatives and their story for our exhibition “THE WALL OF THE DISAPPEARED” in front of the United Nations in Geneva in September. Please find more information here!