-SNEHA SENGUPTA (CORRESPONDENT)
The westernmost province of the Chinese mainland is called Xinjiang, and it is home to the Turko-ethnic group of Uighurs. The severity of their living conditions has often been speculated upon by the global community especially due to acquired evidence that reveals the fact that the Uighur’s human rights are being violated on a regular basis. The Chinese government took over the region back at a time when the Qing Dynasty was in power. Over the years, there has been a rapid escalation of violent outbreaks between the government and these people, which has furthered the crackdown policy. Before moving on to the present conditions of this community, it would be beneficial to get an overall picture of the history of Uighur nationalism and the subsequent Chinese response at various fronts.
The history of the Uighurs goes back a long way, but the time period which is relevant for us is the period after the Urumqi uprising of 2009. This was one of the bloodiest incidents in China since the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989. It all started with the killing of two Muslim Uighurs by their Han Chinese co-workers in a local toy factory. Street protests followed in Urumqi which provoked a violent reaction from Chinese authorities, and widespread rioting followed. The Government was quick in it’s the response to shut down the internet and issue travel passes, but this was just the beginning of what was supposed to be a decade long series of repressive measures taken against the community. Under the rule of Xi Jinping, the measures escalated quickly, from their passports being confiscated across the region to them being constricted to the newly built ‘Re-education Centers’. To the outside world, these vocational training centers (as the Chinese Government dubs them) equips the Uighurs to claim a share in the job market equal to their Han counterparts. To what extent this holds true has been debated worldwide by a number of international organizations, human-rights activists and the media.
A special report published by Reuters, based upon investigations conducted by a special team, uncovers the expansive growth of such centres in the past few years. Using satellite imagery, Reuters has been able to monitor the rapid rise of these facilities and showcase the heavy security around them. It all started back in 2017, when there were reports of missing non-Han civilians in the area of Xinjiang. Gradually, the numbers of missing civilians increased and the presence of the re-education centers was brought to light by the international media. The government initially denied the existence of these camps, but by the end of 2018, they had labelled them ‘vocational training centers’. Under the rule of Chen Quanguo, the Communist Party Secretary, the security measures in the area have seen expansive growth. Scanners with facial recognition systems have been installed in various public places that continue to haunt the civic life of the residents of Xinjiang.
What is life like for the Uighurs in these camps? In order to answer that question, we need to look at the horrific accounts of survivors who have escaped the tortures of the regime. One such story is that of Gulzira Mogdyn, a 38-year-old ethnic Kazakh and a Chinese citizen. She recalls the horror of her foetus being cut out, without the use of anesthesia. Stories of this kind show how sexually violating women, including stopping them from reproducing, has become a weapon for China against its minority Muslim groups. In an attempt to assimilate the minority ethnic groups into the mainstream Han Chinese culture, President Jinping has ensured that these re-education centers strip the inmates of their native values and traits and obliterate their cultural footprint and shared heritage. This is also highlighted by the regular homestays of Chinese officials who have imposed on families staying in the Xinjiang region.
What comes as a surprise is that, while the Uighurs face such traumatic experiences in the face of humanity, the rest of the world chooses to remain silent spectators. It is no surprise that the orthodox Islamic countries have muted their voices due to communist China’s economic and political might in the global sphere. We have already seen the consequences of the Trade War that went on between the two power giants, and none would want a repeat of that. Countries like the UAE and Saudi Arabia in particular, have been suspected of using the same surveillance techniques as China in order to keep a track of the government critics and activists, and thus are in no position to call out the communist party. This is a particularly crucial time since anti-Islamic sentiments have been on the rise among China’s neighbours, India being at the forefront. Just as Kashmir is deemed a matter of internal affairs, China follows the same path as a pre-emptive move to protect its sovereignty. Chinese actions thus remain overshadowed by its deep rooted diplomatic ties at the global platform. So, does that indicate the victory of power over freedom?
Even after the discovery of the very controversial ‘Xinjiang Papers’, which goes on to unravel the real intentions of the party towards the Uighurs, why is there no immediate action on behalf of the international community? Does this indicate that Beijing will continue to view human rights as an existential threat, without being answerable for its actions? If not challenged, this attitude may soon become the norm, and given this, most of us have the ability to predict what the future might hold for us. China needs to realize or even needs to be made to realize that it’s actions will face inevitable backlash someday and that justice shall be delivered.
REFERENCES :
- Auyezov, Olzhas; Wen, Philip (2018). Reuters [online]. Available at : https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/muslims-camps-china/
- Brophy, David (2016). Uyghur Nation: Reform and Revolution on the Russia-China Frontier. Harvard University Press.
- Ramzy, Austin; Buckley, Chris (2019). The New York Times [online]. Available at : https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/11/16/world/asia/china-xinjiang-documents.html
- Qin, Amy; Buckley, Chris (2019). The New York Times [online]. Available at : https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/12/world/asia/china-xinjiang.html
- Thum, Rian (2018). Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Asian History [online]. Available at : https://oxfordre.com/asianhistory/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780190277727.001.0001/acrefore-9780190277727-e-160
- Wang, Maya (2020). Human Rights Watch [online]. Available at : https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/02/20/more-evidence-chinas-horrific-abuses-xinjiang
