CFU PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 26, 2023, 4:30 PM ET
Sabrina Sohail: sabrina@campaignforuyghurs.org
(650) 703-4523
Campaign for Uyghurs (CFU) expresses deep concerns about the ongoing forced separation and language policies affecting Uyghur children in East Turkistan. The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights released a statement today highlighting the significant expansion of China’s State-run boarding school system in East Turkistan and the dire consequences of failing to provide education in the children’s mother tongue, which is leading to their forced assimilation.
The statement emphasized that these boarding schools primarily use Mandarin in their instruction, marginalizing the use of the Uyghur language. Additionally, it raised alarm about the large-scale removal of Uyghur children from their families, resulting in a loss of cultural, religious, and linguistic identity. The UN experts also noted an exponential increase in boarding schools for children of other ethnic groups in East Turkistan and the closure of local schools offering education in native languages.
CFU has been at the forefront of demanding justice and accountability for the grave violations of human rights cast upon the Uyghur people, particularly Uyghur children. Today’s statement by UN experts validates CFU’s longstanding efforts to shed light on these atrocities. While it is encouraging to see international recognition of these issues, more needs to be done to end China’s Uyghur genocide and crimes against humanity.
Executive Director, Rushan Abbas commented on the UN experts’ statement, saying “The concerns raised by UN experts today are a stark reminder that the issues we have been tirelessly highlighting for years are far from resolved. The forced separations and language policies affecting Uyghur children, as emphasized by the UN, are part of an organized scheme to erase the Uyghur people through genocide and crimes against humanity. The massive scale of these crimes, including the forced separation of Uyghur children from their families and the erasure of their cultural and linguistic identity, demands swift and concrete action.”
CFU calls on the international community to take immediate steps to hold the Chinese government accountable for these atrocities. The Uyghur people have endured immense suffering for far too long, and it is our collective responsibility to ensure their rights are protected. CFU urges governments, organizations, and individuals around the world to join us in our efforts to end the Uyghur genocide.
