FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 5, 2025, 9:00 AM EST
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CFU Honors Victims of the Urumchi Massacre on Its 16th Anniversary
Washington, D.C. – Campaign for Uyghurs (CFU) somberly commemorates the 16th anniversary of the July 5th Urumchi Massacre, renewing its demand for justice and accountability. On July 5, 2009, thousands of Uyghurs gathered peacefully in Urumchi, East Turkistan, to protest the murders of Uyghur factory workers in Shaoguan, only to be met with a brutal and deadly crackdown by Chinese security forces. Sixteen years later, the Chinese Communist Party continues to suppress the truth, erase Uyghur history, and target those who dare to speak out.
The Chinese government responded to the peaceful protests with a violent crackdown, deploying armed police who used violent and lethal measures against unarmed demonstrators. In the days that followed, thousands of Uyghurs were detained, disappeared, or killed. State media launched a propaganda campaign blaming the unrest on external “separatist” forces and obscuring the events of the Shaoguan massacre. Sixteen years later, the actual number of victims remains unknown, and the CCP continues to suppress evidence, silence survivors, and use the massacre as a justification for intensifying repression in East Turkistan.
“As we mark the 16th anniversary of the Urumchi Massacre, we honor the lives stolen by a regime that fears truth and justice,” said Rushan Abbas, CFU Executive Director. “The Chinese Communist Party’s use of violence to silence peaceful protestors in 2009 paved the way for today’s genocide. The world failed to respond to the CCP’s brutal bloodshed then and continuously turned a blind eye to today’s genocide in pursuit of economic interests and business ties with Beijing. We urge the international community to confront this history, demand transparency for today’s atrocities, and hold the CCP accountable for its crimes against humanity.”
The July 5th Urumchi Massacre remains a defining moment in the Chinese regime’s campaign of violence against the Uyghur people, one that has since escalated into an ongoing genocide marked by mass internment, forced labor, and the systematic erasure of Uyghur identity. Campaign for Uyghurs calls on democratic governments, multilateral institutions, and human rights advocates worldwide to confront this legacy of state violence and stand with the Uyghur people in demanding truth, accountability, and lasting justice. As we remember the victims of July 5th, we reaffirm our commitment to amplifying Uyghur voices and exposing the CCP’s crimes on the global stage.
