uyghur
China reacts as US law that bans imports linked to forced Uyghur labor takes effect
- The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA), which prevents imports linked to forced labor by Uyghurs and other persecuted groups in China, took effect on Tuesday.
- On June 13, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agency issued a notice to importers, instructing them that they are expected to map their supply chains, including the source of their raw materials, to ensure that their products are not made in part or wholly in Xinjiang or from companies with connections to forced labor.
- “The new US law means it’s no longer business as usual for companies profiting from forced labor in China, and Xinjiang especially,” Jim Wormington, senior researcher and advocate for corporate accountability at Human Rights Watch, said. “Companies should swiftly identify any supply chain links to Xinjiang and exit the region or risk violating US law and seeing their goods detained at the US border.”
- In a statement, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said the new law and the U.S. sanctions “represent an escalation of the U.S. suppression of China under the guise of human rights and prove that the United States wantonly undermines the global economic and trade rules, as well as the stability of the international industrial chain and supply chain.”
A new U.S. law that would prevent imports linked to forced labor by Uyghurs and other persecuted groups in China took effect on Tuesday.
The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA), which President Joe Biden signed into law on Dec. 23, 2021, aims to penalize the Chinese government over its alleged oppression of the Uyghur people. It grants U.S. authorities increased powers to block the import of goods from the Xinjiang region.
Avalanche of hacked Xinjiang Police documents, images expose Chinese government abuse of Uyghurs
- A leaked cache of thousands of photos and official documents, titled “The Xinjiang Police Files,” reveal new information surrounding China’s detainment of its Uyghur population.
- An anonymous hacker allegedly downloaded and decrypted the secret files from a number of police computer servers in Xinjiang before handing them to U.S.-based scholar Dr. Adrian Zenz.
- The hacked files contain over 5,000 photographs of Uyghurs and other Chinese ethnic, Muslim minorities from the Xinjiang region taken by police between January and July 2018.
- Also included are images of the detention centers themselves, supporting previous reports about the conditions of the facilities.
- Despite the Chinese government’s insistence that the internment camps are “vocational schools,” records show armed officer guards are instructed with a “shoot-to-kill” policy for escapees.
- Foreign Minister Wang Yi previously stated in 2019, “The truth is the education and training centres in Xinjiang are schools that help people free themselves from extremism,” referring to the Islamic religion.
A leaked cache of thousands of photos and official documents, titled “The Xinjiang Police Files,” reveal new information surrounding China’s detainment of its Uyghur population.
An anonymous hacker allegedly downloaded and decrypted the secret files from a number of police computer servers in Xinjiang before handing them to Dr. Adrian Zenz, a U.S.-based scholar who has previously published research on Xinjiang.
China is tracking down Uyghurs across the world, independent study finds
- China’s crackdown on Uyghurs extends beyond Xinjiang to a diaspora spread throughout the world, according to a new independent study.
- Author Bradley Jardine describes the phenomenon as “transnational repression,” which can be traced back to 1997.
- Between 1997 and January 2022, more than 1,500 Uyghurs were deported or extradited back to China, while over 5,000 more were subjected to intimidation and harassment, the study found.
- The repression is expected to grow as China fortifies its tools to include cyberattacks and other forms of online harassment.
- Jardine recommends the U.S. and other democratic countries to strengthen refugee resettlement programs, establish channels for harassment reporting and restrict exports on surveillance technologies.
In pursuit of its security ideals, China aims to track down every single Uyghur throughout the world, a new study reveals.
Beijing has devised a transnational system of surveillance, extradition and detention that is “pervasive, tenacious and often illegal,” according to research published by the Wilson Center’s Kissinger Institute on China and the United States.
Cornell students from China jeer, walk out on Uyghur student who asked lawmaker about Uyghur genocide
- A group of international Chinese students from Cornell University allegedly booed Rizwangul NurMuhammad, an Uyghur student and Fulbright scholar, during a public service career talk last week.
- NurMuhammad asked guest speaker Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) about why the U.S. and the international community have spoken up against Russia for invading Ukraine yet remain quiet on the issue of the alleged genocide of the Uyghurs in China.
- As Slotkin tried responding to NurMuhammad’s question, the Chinese students reportedly walked out.
- Around 88 students signed an email that was sent to Cornell Institute of Public Affairs faculty members the following day, explaining that the walkout was due to the “extremely hostile” environment the talk’s Chinese attendees were put in. “At that moment, we were not sitting in a classroom; we were crucified in a courtroom for crimes that we did not commit,” they wrote.
- In a faculty-wide email, Cornell Institute for Public Affairs Director Professor Matt Hall said the discussion of the atrocities against the “Uyghur people are valuable points of discussion and critical to promoting open dialogue. At the same time, we must also respect that walkouts are a legitimate form of protest and an appropriate expression of disapproval.”
A group of international Chinese students from Cornell University staged a walkout and allegedly booed an Uyghur student during a public service career talk last week.
The walkout occurred after Fulbright scholar Rizwangul NurMuhammad spoke during the question-and-answer portion of a talk that was part of a weekly speaker series for the students of Cornell University’s Master in Public Administration program on Thursday.
Chinese woman in Australia filmed ripping down Tiananmen Square posters, denying Uyghur ‘camps’ claim
- A Chinese woman was filmed tearing down several posters that were created to support Hong Kong’s democracy from the Lennon Wall at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia.
- The woman allegedly dismissed the events that occurred during the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre by calling them “lies” and incorrectly saying that they took place “50 years ago.” The incident was filmed by Billie Kugelman, chief editor of student newspaper Semper Floreat at the University of Queensland.
- His video was shared online by Drew Pavlou, an outspoken critic of the Chinese government and Chinese Communist Party (CCP), who is running to “represent Queensland in the Australian senate.”
- The woman can be seen laughing in the video after Kugelman brings up the alleged human rights violations against Uyghurs in China.
A Chinese woman purportedly studying in Brisbane, Australia, was recently filmed rejecting the claim of Uyghur Muslims being detained in “concentration camps” in China as she took down posters featuring photos of the Tiananmen Square protests created to support Hong Kong’s democracy.
The incident, filmed by Billie Kugelman, chief editor of student newspaper Semper Floreat at the University of Queensland, was shared online by Drew Pavlou, an outspoken critic of the Chinese government and Chinese Communist Party (CCP) who is running to “represent Queensland in the Australian senate.”
China denies using Uyghur torchbearer to deflect alleged abuses, says accusations part of ‘smear campaign’
- Dinigeer Yilamujiang, a 20-year-old cross-country skier from Xinjiang, was chosen to light the Olympic cauldron on Friday night.
- After finishing 43rd in her event, the Olympic debutant was barely referred to by Chinese media.
- U.S. envoy to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield said Yilamujiang’s selection as a torchbearer served as a distraction from abuses against her Uyghur community.
- Chinese ambassador Zhang Jun fired back at the accusation, saying Yilamujiang was chosen, simply because she was a pride of the country.
China is sternly refuting a U.S. allegation that it chose an Uyghur torchbearer for the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics to “distract” the public from human rights abuses against the ethnic minority.
Dinigeer Yilamujiang, a 20-year-old cross-country skier from Xinjiang, was chosen as one of the last two torchbearers to light the Olympic cauldron on Friday night. Beside her was Heilongjiang-born Zhao Jiawen, who competes in Nordic combined.
France officially recognizes China’s treatment of Uyghurs as ‘genocide’ in parliamentary resolution
- On Tuesday, France adopted an opposition-led resolution condemning China’s treatment of Uyghurs as “genocide.”
- “We refuse to submit to propaganda from a regime that is banking on our cowardice and our avarice to perpetrate a genocide in plain sight," said Socialist Party leader Olivier Faure.
- The Chinese embassy in France released a statement saying the “genocide” allegations are “pure lies based on prejudices and hostility towards China.”
French lawmakers have condemned the Chinese government’s treatment of the Uyghur people with an official resolution calling it a “genocide.”
On Tuesday, France’s National Assembly adopted the non-binding resolution that “officially recognizes the violence perpetrated by the People’s Republic of China against the Uyghurs as constituting crimes against humanity and genocide,” reported Agence France-Presse.
Billionaire investor Chamath Palihapitiya says ‘nobody cares’ about Uyghurs in China
- During a recent episode of his podcast “All-In,” entrepreneur Chamath Palihapitiya said “nobody cares” about the Uyghurs in China.
- “If you're asking me, do I care about a segment of a class of people in another country? Not until we can take care of ourselves will I prioritize them over us,” he said.
- NBA’s Golden State Warriors basketball team, which Palihapitiya co-owns, posted a tweet distancing itself from Palihapitiya’s views.
Sri Lankan-born Canadian and American venture capitalist Chamath Palihapitiya sparked criticism online after saying “nobody cares” about the Uyghurs in China.
The billionaire investor, who owns 10% of the NBA Golden State Warriors basketball team, made remarks about the Uyghurs during an episode of “All-In,” a podcast he co-hosts, according to CNBC.
Elon Musk opens Tesla showroom in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region
- Tesla opened a store in Xinjiang, a region in China accused of crimes against humanity.
- The announcement came after President Biden’s bill was passed prohibiting imports from the Xinjiang region due to concerns surrounding forced labor.
- The Tesla store offers both sales and delivery services.
Elon Musk’s Tesla company opened its first showroom in the capital of China’s Xinjiang region despite allegations that it is a site of genocide targeting Uyghur populations.
While the electric vehicle company already has 27 stores in mainland China, Tesla announced its most highly criticized and latest store in the Ürümqi’s Uyghur Autonomous Region on Weibo on Dec. 31.
