Embedded Files
uighur muslims- a campaign of ethnic cleansing
uighur muslims- a campaign of ethnic cleansing
Deep in a remote province of China, Uighur muslims face a grave threat
China's controversies in Hong Kong, Tibet, and Taiwan are widely known, but farther off, in a province at the northern border of China, more trouble is brewing. In Xinjiang, China, many have claimed that a campaign of ethnic cleansing is being carried out by the Chinese government against Uighur Muslims.
Xijiang is a lonely area with mountains and deserts. China has only had control of Xinjiang since 1949, and many Uighurs still refer to it as its early name: East Turkestan. But who are the Uighurs? Uighurs are Turkic-speaking Muslims who originate in Central Asia, and are mentioned in Chinese records dating back to the third century CE. The largest population of Uighurs in the world, around 11 million people, live in Xinjiang.
China claims that Uighurs hold views that are a threat to their security and that they are responsible for terrorist attacks. They highlight attacks in 2013 and 2014 against China. Two specific attacks were the attack on China's Tiananmen Square and the attack in Southwestern China. These attacks were supposedly the provocation that led to China's campaign of ethnic cleansing, as the creation of "camps" for Uighurs followed not long after.
China’s President Xi Jinping has had a abnormal approach for dealing with the Muslim minorities in Xinjiang, specifically the Uighurs. Not too long ago, the Chinese government installed many new modern surveillance technologies and put many police officers in the Xinjiang area. Before the pictures of camp construction with barbed wire fences and watch towers leaked, the Chinese government denied even the existence of the camps.
Sayragul Sauytbay is a teacher who escaped from the camps, and she gave some insight to the public about what happened in the camps. Inside the rooms, according to Sauytbay, are five cameras that police watch. 20 inmates would be in a room that’s 172 square feet, with one bucket for the toilet that the Uighurs can only use for two minutes per day. Their hair is shaved and their hands and feet are shackled all day, except when writing. The inmates are required to sleep on their right side, otherwise they are punished. The inmates are taught Chinese and Communist Party propaganda songs. They recite slogans like “I love China,” "I am Chinese," and "I love Xi Jinping." The inmates ages can range from 13 to as old as 84. There are even rumors that medical procedures and testing is going on without justification, like unnecessary procedures on many women.
After hearing these reports from Uighur survivors, 22 countries, most of which were European, wrote to China acknowledging “disturbing reports of large-scale arbitrary detentions of Uighurs.” However, four days later, seemingly in response to this move on the part of the European countries, 37 countries, most of which were muslim-majority, wrote about China's “remarkable achievements in the field of human rightst by protecting their country from ‘terrorism, separatsim and religous extremism.'' The countries responsible for this letter included Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar. Later, the US and 30+ other countries officially named the camps a “horrific campaign of repression” at the U.N. General Assembly.
It remains to be seen what will occur with the Uighur minority in China. Perhaps the pressure from other countries will encourage China to take the situation into consideration and work to end some of the injustices being described in these camps. Until more definitive information is released out of China, and until the Chinese government acknowledges the crisis, the existence of the Uighur concentration camps will remain an ongoing political debate.
This is Su’s first year being on The Edge staff. This is her second year at Edgewood. In her free time she enjoys playing tennis and spending time with her friends. Throughout this year as a staff writer she strives to improve her writing.
Page updated
Report abuse