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PRESS RELEASE: WUC REMEMBERS VICTIMS OF THE GHULJA MASSACRE ON 24RD COMMEMORATIVE DAY

PRESS RELEASE: WUC REMEMBERS VICTIMS OF THE GHULJA MASSACRE ON 24RD COMMEMORATIVE DAY

Press Release – For immediate release
04 February 2021
Contact: World Uyghur Congress
www.uyghurcongress.org 
+49 89 5432 1999 or [email protected]

On the 24th anniversary of the Ghulja Massacre, the World Uyghur Congress (WUC) remembers the victims of the incident where hundreds of Uyghurs were arrested, wounded or killed during a violent crackdown on peaceful protesters by Chinese security forces. The event has proven to be a significant precedent for the further brutal repression which by now has culminated into a full-scale genocide against the Uyghur people by the Chinese government.

On February 5, 1997, thousands of Uyghurs gathered for a peaceful demonstration in the Ili prefecture city of Ghulja in East Turkistan in response to continued Chinese aggression and the prohibition of a Uyghur social gathering, known as Mäshräp, an important celebration of Uyghur culture. The protests were immediately quashed by Chinese security forces leaving at least 100 dead and many more injured. Nearly 4000 would be arrested and of those, 200 would subsequently face the death penalty.

“Visiting my family in Ghulja with my young son [at the time], the brutal way in which the peaceful demonstration was put down made me decide that this was not a country in which to bring him up, facing religious persecution and systemic discrimination from cradle to grave”, WUC’s UK Director, Rahima Mahmut, said.

Subsequent Uyghur protests or demonstrations have been dealt with in an equally repressive and violent manner. Most notably, after demonstrations and unrest in Urumqi on July 5, 2009, Chinese security forces cracked down brutally on anyone thought to be involved, which resulted in hundreds of innocent Uyghurs being killed, arrested or simply disappeared. Human Rights Watch recorded over 40 Uyghurs were subjected to enforced disappearance by the Chinese government, although the total number of disappearances is likely over 200 people.

Since 2009, it has become practically impossible for Uyghurs in East Turkistan to exercise their right of peaceful assembly and freedom of expression. Every form of dissent has been met by ruthless suppression from the Chinese authorities, which over the past decade has also been extended to any expression of a distinct Uyghur cultural and religious identity. Everyday lawful, non-violent behaviour, such as praying, attending religious events, or talking to or having family abroad, has been criminalized and constitutes reasons for being sent to one of the mass internment camps. As a consequence, between 1.8 and 3 million Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims have been arbitrarily detained and subjected to the most horrendous abuses.

“The Ghulja massacre set an important precedent for the brutal crackdown on any form of dissent or any opinion that does not align with the CCP’s narrative”, WUC President Dolkun Isa said. “The events in 1997 highlighted that the Chinese government does not allow the Uyghurs’ legitimate grievances to be expressed, and its measures to silence the Uyghur people have only become more extreme since then. This has now evolved into an attempt to eradicate the Uyghur people as a whole, and silence them forever”.

In this context, the Ghulja massacre and its aftermath highlight a decade-long process of violent repression in an attempt to stamp out the Uyghurs’ freedom, culture, religion and ethnic identity. These processes are also being extended elsewhere. Inside China, Tibetans, Hong Kongers, Southern Mongolians and Chinese rights activists are increasingly targeted for peacefully calling for their rights to be respected. Even outside China, dissident voices cannot escape Beijing’s attempts to threaten, harass, intimidate, or even physically attack them.

24 years ago, the international community failed to adequately hold China accountable for the massacre of innocent civilians. The victims and their families have never achieved justice or accountability. Instead, the persecution has escalated into a full-scale genocide, threatening the existence of the Uyghurs as a people. Urgent action from the international community is now more needed than ever. While remembering the victims of the Ghulja massacre, the world can no longer stand by idly while a genocide is unfolding before its eyes.