The Uyghur Genocide

The Uyghurs, a majority Muslim Turkic ethnic group found in the Xinjiang (East Turkestan) region of China, have long faced prejudice by the dominant ethnic Han Chinese ruling class, yet the ongoing Uyghur Genocide contends as the harshest inflicted against the Uyghurs. The Chinese Communist Party led by Xi Jinping successfully turned Xinjiang into a majority ethnic Han Chinese region in just eight years through a grotesque series of systematic restrictions, reeducation, and rape, whilst simultaneously pacifying Western nations and convincing the rest of the world there isn’t an ongoing genocide.

The animosity towards the Uyghurs from the CCP traces back to the Sino-Soviet Split in the 1960s. In an attempt to weaken Mao Zedong’s regime in China, the Soviet Union supported Xinjiang independence movements until the USSR’s collapse in 1991. Remnants of Xinjiang separatism linger to this day with even extreme terrorist groups forming and carrying out attacks, giving the Uyghur people a reputation of disobedience. Uyghur nationalism sets a dangerous precedent for Xi as it encourages nationalism within other minority groups such as the Tibetans and Mongols challenging the Chinese monopoly over the resources and defense provided.

Historically, Western China, where Xinjiang lies, always acted as a geographical barrier between East and West Asia due to the mountainous terrain. If China were to lose western provinces such as Tibet and Xinjiang, it would put Xi’s regime at a geographic disadvantage against nations such as India. In addition, 84% of China’s total cotton exports come from Xinjiang as well as large amounts of natural gas and oil. Xinjang’s rich resources and solid defense means that China will go to great lengths to suppress any form of separatism, and they found their golden ticket to do so after the Urumqi Attack.

The Urumqi Attack, enacted by a group of extremist Uyghurs on May 22, 2014, which killed 43 people and injured over 90 people, gave the CCP the perfect excuse to start the Uyghur Genocide. The CCP decided to punish an entire group of people for the actions of less than one percent of the population. Yet what the CCP fails to open its eyes to is that radical movements arise from extreme governments. Since the CCP’s establishment in 1949, China adopted an extreme assimilationist ideology, promoting only Han Chinese culture and values, as well as obedience to the state. The CCP strictly regulates everything from video game habits to religion, so much so that having an “Abnormally long beard,” as Xi calls it, is illegal. The CCP gives an ultimatum of either fully pledging loyalty to the state or facing the consequences. In turn, the Urumqi Attack is the CCP’s fault. Though the actions of the terrorists in the Urumqi attack are not justified, if the CCP took the necessary steps to uplift the people of Xinjiang, violence would not be an issue in the region.

Alas, concentration camps continue to open in Xinjiang. Slave labor, especially involving cotton, remains rampant. The CCP strips Uyghur men from their families to work in said slave labor camps, and in replacement, ethnic Han Chinese men are installed, often committing horrific acts against the Uyghur women and children. Uyghur woman, Gulhumar Haitiwaji, shared on NPR News, “…We have to stay 11 hours every day in class. Before starting to eat or when the teacher comes in the class, we have to get up and say really loud three gratitudes – to the country, to the Communist Party and to Xi Jinping. And after a while, they gave to all of us a personal notebook and asked us to note everything – all our true feelings. But we all knew that it was a trap. We only noted our thanks and our gratitude to the system. We can’t speak in Uyghur, and we cannot look at each other.” Gulhumar Haitiwaji is just one of the few lucky survivors of the millions of Uyghurs living in persecution every day.

It would be assumed that Turkic, Muslim, and Western nations would not only denounce but take action against the atrocities committed against the Uyghurs. Well, Turkic nations such as Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan are in full support of the Uyghur Genocide. Nations such as Iran and Saudi Arabia, nations that are Muslim theocracies, and nations that claim to be ruling in the name of Allah, are in full support of the Uyghur Genocide. Autocracies around the world with their own humanitarian rights abuses such as Pakistan and Eritrea are in full support of the Uyghur Genocide. A further 38 nations are in full support of the Uyghur Genocide The Diplomat reports, “In return, Cuba’s U.N. Representative Ana Silvia Rodríguez Abascal read a statement on behalf of 45 countries in defense of Chinese policies.” Though indeed the West is taking action, right? Although the West condemns the actions of the CCP, as soon as China provides cheap labor, manufactured goods, or any other resource, Western nations suddenly become complacent. The CCP knows how globalized nations behave, and takes advantage of that. The West has reached a point of over-reliance on China economically to just fully pull out. China has even gone to remove pro-Xinjiang videos on TikTok to keep its users uninformed yet nobody bats an eye. Unfortunately, the best the average person can do to combat the Uyghur Genocide is to educate themselves.