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Weekly Brief – 25 February 2021

Weekly Brief – 25 February 2021

NEWS:

Canadian House of Commons Recognizes Uyghur Genocide
On the 22nd of February, the World Uyghur Congress (WUC) applauded the adoption of a Opposition Motion Bill in the House of Commons of Canada, acknowledging China’s crackdown on Uyghurs and other Turkic people, as genocide.

The WUC also welcomed the vote of Members of Parliament in favour of the amendment calling for the relocation of the 2022 Winter Olympics. Earlier this year, the former and current  US Secretaries of State declared the human rights violations against the Uyghurs as genocide. Earlier this month, lawyers from the Essex Court Chambers published the first formal legal opinion, which concluded that crimes against humanity and genocide were taking place in East Turkistan. The WUC urged the Canadian government to adopt the motion and recognize the Uyghur genocide.

Dutch House of Representatives Passes Motion on Uyghur Genocide
On February 25th, the World Uyghur Congress (WUC) weclomed the passing of a motion in the Dutch House of Representatives, by a cross-party majority, that recognizes China’s abuses against the Uyghur people in East Turkistan as a genocide. With the passing of the motion, the Dutch House of Representatives becomes the first parliament in Europe to recognize the Uyghur genocide. Though other motions on the situation of the Uyghur people in East Turkistan were also proposed, these were not passed. The WUC urges the Dutch government to adopt this motion and work together with international allies to put an end to these crimes.

46th Session of the Human Rights Council
This week, the 46th Session of the UN Human Rights Council started virtually with the high level segment. Eight states (Finnland, UK, Germany, Austria, Turkey, Japan, Canada, US and France) and the European Union expressed their deep concerns regarding China’s gross human rights violations in East Turkistan. “We are deeply concerned about what we are  hearing from the Uyghurs, the Rohingyas and from Tigray”, said Finland’s Prime Minister Marin Sanna. ” The situation in Xinjiang is beyond appalling . The reported abuses – which include torture, forced labour and forced sterillisation of women – are extreme and they are extensive. They are taking place on an industrial scale”, stated UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab. 

During the session, the World Uyghur Congress will meet with various missions to the UN to brief them on the current human rights situation in East Turkistan, including the gender-based and sexual violence Uyghur and other Turkic women face in the internment camps and  forced labour. 

WUC Participates in Apple Campaign
On February 23, on the occasion of Apple’s Annual Shareholders Meeting, the World Uyghur Congress along with Free Tibet, Students for a Free Tibet, International Tibet Network, SumOfUs and Tibet Action Institute urged the company to uphold its human rights policy. On this occasion, Uyghur, Tibetan and HongKong activists organised a discussion on ‘’Human RIghts + Surveillance in a Digital World’’ on Clubhouse, to highlight Apple’s failures to respect human rights in China. 

Japanese Companies Cease Business with Chinese Companies Complicit in Uyghur Forced Labour
On February 23rd, BW Businessworld reported that 12 Japanese Companies, including Toshiba Corp., Fast Retailing Co., operator of the Uniqlo casual clothing brand, and Sony Corp. announced their decision to cease their business deals with Chinese companies involved in Uyghur forced labour. The WUC applauds these decisions, and as part of the Coalition to End Forced Labour in the Uyghur Region urges other businesses worldwide to sign the Call to Action and cease business relationship with Chinese businesses in the Uyghur Region. So far, the United States and the United Kingdom were the first countries putting restrictions on cotton and other products produced in East Turkistan. This summer, the European Commission is expected to introduce its European-wide mandatory due diligence legislation, requiring active steps from EU businesses to ensure they do not profit from Uyghur forced labour.

Revised Uyghur Genocide Amendment 
On February 23rd, the UK House of Lords voted in favour of the revised Genocide Amendment to the Trade Bill by 367 to 214 votes, receiving overwhelming cross-party support for the third time. Supportive MPs will again try to bring the Genocide Amendment to a vote in the House of Commons, after the UK government made an independent vote impossible two weeks ago. Before the vote, Holocaust survivors again appealed in a letter to UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson to take a firmer line on trade deals with genocidal states. “Trade is not worth the price of a people. We simply cannot stand by when others remain silent. We cannot stand by whilst we carry on business as usual” stated Holocaust survivors Ruth Barnett and Dorit Oliver Wolff in the letter. They are also asking the Prime Minister for a meeting ahead of the vote on the Genocide Amendment. Currently, more than 37,000 have signed their petition.

HRW Report on Baseless Imprisonment Surge in East Turkistan
On February 24th, Human Rights Watch reported on the sharp increase of imprisonments and long-term sentences in East Turkistan. Since the Chinese government introduced its brutal “Strike Hard Campaign” in 2016, more than 250,000 people have been convicted and sentenced by the formal criminal justice system, among them many without committing a genuine offense. “Despite the veneer of legality, many of those in Xinjiang’s prisons are ordinary people who were convicted for going about their lives and practicing their religion,”said Maya Wang, senior China researcher at Human Rights Watch.

PARTICIPATE:

Election Debate with WUC and Save Tibet on Uyghur and Tibetan Rights
On March 10th, join the WUC and Save Tibet Netherlands for an election debate (NL) about China’s repression of Uyghurs and Tibetans. How does China influence human rights & how should the Netherlands react?

Sign Petition to Call on UK Prime Minister to Meet with Holocaust Survivors ahead of Vote on the Genocide Amendment
Holocaust survivors Ruth Barnett and Dorit Oliver Wolff asked UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson in letter to meet with them to discuss the Genocide Amendment to the Trade Bill. Furthermore, they have also started a petition