Victims of Chinese Genocide Urge Congress to Declare Uyghur Heartland an Occupied Country

A coalition of 61 organizations representing Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz people, and others facing an ongoing genocide campaign by the Chinese Communist Party published a letter on Tuesday urging Congress to recognize their homeland, East Turkistan, as an “occupied country” enduring Chinese colonization.

It also urged other “meaningful actions” to help the victims of China’s ongoing genocide, including action before the International Criminal Court, appointing a special State Department official for East Turkistan, and rejecting Communist China’s Han name of “Xinjiang” for the region.

“We implore the U.S. Congress to take the lead in pushing a reluctant executive branch of the U.S. Government to take meaningful actions to truly end this prolonged humanitarian crisis,” the letter read in part, “by addressing the root cause of the ongoing genocide in East Turkistan: Chinese colonization and occupation of East Turkistan.”

The letter described China’s actions against indigenous East Turkistani people as “not only genocide and crimes against humanity, but are a direct, manifold challenge to American laws and interests.”

The letter published on Tuesday is an effort led by the East Turkistan Government in Exile, which represents the diaspora from the region around the world. It contained several suggestions to member of Congress, including Congressional leadership, on how to best support the people of East Turkistan, including the recognition of the region as an occupied nation and support for legislation such as the Uyghur Policy Act, which would elevate the genocide as a priority for the State Department and federal government generally.

In addition to the East Turkistan Government in Exile, other signatories among the 61 include the East Turkistan National Movement, the European East Turkistan Education Center, Canada’s International Support for Uyghurs, and organizations based in Japan, Australia, Norway, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and other nations.

“With deep appreciation, we acknowledge the United States Congress’s steadfast commitment to upholding the rights and freedoms of Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and other Turkic peoples in our homeland,” the signatories wrote. “However, the genocide persists relentlessly in 2024.”

To help end the genocide, the parties “ask the U.S. Congress to introduce and adopt a resolution recognizing East Turkistan, like Tibet, in accordance with U.S. policy of respecting the right to external self-determination.”