Amnesty: Three years after the UN report, repression continues unabated in Xinjiang
China continues to violate the rights and abuse Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in the western region. Victims' families are silenced and threatened. Those waiting for the return of a relative from detention centres tell their stories. For Brooks, Amnesty’s China Director, “lives have been destroyed, families separated, and communities dismantled by the Chinese authorities’ continuing cruelty.”
Beijing (AsiaNews) – Three years after the UN report on crimes against humanity committed by China in Xinjiang against the Uyghur Muslim minority, Amnesty International issued a press released noting that there is still no evidence that China has taken steps to ensure accountability, punish those responsible, and prevent further violations and abuses.
While China has deliberately ignored the UN's recommendations, the human rights organisation reports that new stories are emerging that show that local Muslim ethnic minorities still endure "repression" and that the families of detainees "continue to seek truth, justice, and freedom for all those suffering in the Uyghur region.”
Lives destroyed, families separated
The international community and the UN have yet to act on the UN report’s findings. Meanwhile, the Chinese government also continues to intimidate and silence victims' families and maintain repressive laws and policies.
“Three years after the UN report concluded that China was responsible for grave human rights violations in Xinjiang, it is shameful that the international community has failed to act,” said Sarah Brooks, Amnesty International’s China Director.
“Lives have been ruined, families separated and communities dismantled by the Chinese authorities’ continuing cruelty. Today, families of detainees continue to seek truth, justice and freedom for all those suffering in the Uyghur region,” she added.
Amnesty’s press release cites the report published on 31 August 2022, by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, regarding violations, including torture, committed by China against the Muslim minority in the western autonomous region of Xinjiang.
Since 2017, documents and testimonies have emerged relating to the repression of a community (that also includes ethnic Kazakhs and other minorities) in the name of the fight against Islamic terrorism, with practices like forced medical treatment and poor detention conditions.
China has rejected the claims, saying that the 46-page report by Michelle Bachelet “wantonly defames and slanders China and interferes in China's internal affairs” through “presumption of guilt” as well as “disinformation and fabricated lies by anti-China forces".
In 2021, Amnesty International launched a worldwide petition, signed by over 323,000 people in 184 countries and territories, calling for the release of hundreds of thousands of men and women from the Muslim minority, arbitrarily detained and subjected to mass internment, torture, and persecution in the Uyghur region, as well as demanding that those responsible for the abuse be held accountable.
Since January of this year, Amnesty has contacted families and sources for 126 people involved in the #FreeXinjiangDetainees campaign, receiving a series of responses illustrating the ongoing violations and their continuing impact on the lives of families.
Victims' Stories
Amnesty’s report contains firsthand accounts and testimonies of ongoing persecution.
Patime,[i] who lost a relative in detention while another is still jailed, said that all hope of action has now gone. “The global attention that peaked around the report has faded, and China has faced little meaningful consequence,” they said.
Regarding the relative still in prison, Patime added: “We have been completely cut off from him since June 2018. Not a single call, letter or message… This silence is not just painful; it has taken a heavy toll on our physical and mental health. Living with this uncertainty is its own form of torture.”
Mamatjan Juma, whose brother Ahmetjan is in prison, said the lack of news makes daily life difficult. “It feels like living with a wound that never heals, because I don’t know if he’s safe, if he’s healthy, or even if he’s alive.”
Others interviewed reported having limited contact with their families, describing constant surveillance by Chinese authorities.
Murekkem Mahmud, who lives in Turkey, said that communications with his parents are constantly monitored. “Family visits happen now, but always under surveillance – a way to deny the crimes and mislead the world… After 10 years apart, I just want to be with my family again… I want the uncertainty to end.”
Nefise Oğuz, whose uncle Alim is still in prison, said: “Every day of delay is another day of suffering for innocent people... I want real, concrete action from the international community, not just words.”
Medine Nazimi, whose sister Mevlüde is still deprived of her liberty, expressed frustration at the lack of progress over the past three years. Reached by Amnesty, she stressed that, “The international community – including governments, civil society and ordinary citizens – must stop treating China's crimes as just an internal issue. What is happening to Uyghurs is not a domestic matter, it is a human rights crisis and a crime against humanity.”
Recommendations
In concluding the press release, Amnesty offers several recommendations to address this shocking crisis of rights and freedoms.
First, it urges the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to provide a "public update" on the report and to reiterate the call on member states "to condemn China’s serious human rights violations" in Xinjiang.
At the same time, it reiterates the "critical importance" of establishing an " independent, international investigative mechanism to ensure accountability."
UN member states must also support effective access to justice and concrete remedies, including reparations for victims and survivors, particularly those within their national jurisdictions, as well as take appropriate measures to prevent further human rights violations.
RED LANTERNS IS THE ASIANEWS NEWSLETTER DEDICATED TO CHINA. WOULD YOU LIKE TO RECEIVE IT EVERY THURSDAY? TO SUBSCRIBE, CLICK HERE.
[i] Not the real name to avoid retaliation, like all those in the report.
.png)
13/01/2021 17:00
09/02/2024 18:54
18/01/2024 16:47
