Exile groups call for international pressure on China over alleged rights abuses in Xinjiang….reports Asian Lite News Desk
Members of the Uyghur community and officials of the East Turkistan Government in Exile (ETGE) held demonstrations in the United States and Canada, calling for greater international action against China over the 2009 violence in Urumqi and raising concerns about the treatment of Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslim minorities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.
The protests took place outside the White House in Washington and the Alberta Legislature in Edmonton on Sunday to mark the 17th anniversary of the July 5, 2009, unrest in Urumqi. Organisers described the anniversary as a day of remembrance for those who lost their lives during the violence and called for international accountability.
The ETGE said similar commemorative events were organised by Uyghur communities in several countries, including Japan, Turkey, Norway and the United Kingdom, to honour the victims and draw attention to what it alleges is ongoing repression in Xinjiang.
According to the exile group, the protests in 2009 began after Uyghur demonstrators gathered in Urumqi seeking justice over the killing of Uyghur workers at a factory in Shaoguan, southern China. The ETGE alleged that Chinese authorities responded with force, resulting in hundreds of deaths, mass arrests and enforced disappearances.
The organisation further alleged that the events of 2009 foreshadowed a broader campaign of repression in Xinjiang, claiming that millions of Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz and other Turkic communities have since faced arbitrary detention, forced labour and restrictions on their cultural and religious freedoms. China has consistently rejected allegations of genocide, forced labour and widespread human rights abuses in Xinjiang, maintaining that its policies are aimed at countering extremism and promoting economic development.
Speaking at the rally outside the White House, ETGE Foreign Minister Salih Hudayar urged the United States to support what he described as East Turkistan’s right to self-determination, arguing that democratic nations should stand with people seeking political freedom.
In Edmonton, ETGE Prime Minister Abdulahat Nur, who also heads the Alberta Uyghur Cultural Society, called on the Canadian government to adopt a stronger position on Xinjiang and recognise what he described as the region’s right to self-determination.
The ETGE appealed to the governments of the United States, Canada and the wider international community to increase pressure on Beijing, seek accountability under international law and support what it described as the aspirations of the people of East Turkistan.
Beijing has repeatedly denied accusations of human rights violations in Xinjiang, asserting that its policies are intended to combat terrorism, separatism and religious extremism while improving living standards in the region.
