PRESS RELEASE – For Immediate Release
East Turkistan Government in Exile (ETGE)
East-Turkistan.Net
contact@East-Turkistan.Net
12 October 2024
Today marks a solemn day of national mourning for East Turkistanis across the world, including dozens of Uyghurs and their supporters who gathered outside the White House to commemorate and protest 75 years of China’s brutal military invasion of East Turkistan. Since its invasion on October 12, 1949, the People’s Republic of China has enforced a regime of genocide, systematic colonization, and mass oppression upon the Uyghur, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, and other Turkic peoples of East Turkistan.
Despite recognition of China’s atrocities as ongoing genocide by the U.S. government and the parliaments of over a dozen Western countries, as well as recognition by the UN as “crimes against humanity,” nothing has been done to hold China accountable. Seventy-five years after China invaded East Turkistan and over a decade since it launched its campaign of genocide in May 2014, the millions of Uyghurs and other Turkic peoples in East Turkistan continue to endure mass incarceration, enslavement through forced labor, forced sterilizations, and the systematic erasure of their cultural and national identity.
Dr. Mamtimin Ala, President of the East Turkistan Government in Exile (ETGE), declared: ”The time for words alone has passed. We call on Canada, the U.S., and all nations that champion freedom and human rights to act decisively. Recognize East Turkistan for what it is: an occupied country. Support our right to external self-determination and our struggle to recover our sovereignty. Anything less will allow China to continue its genocide with impunity.”
China’s atrocities in Occupied East Turkistan are not isolated human rights abuses—it is a deliberate strategy of genocide. The goal is to wipe out an entire people and their rich cultural heritage, a campaign that the international community can no longer afford to ignore. China’s ongoing campaign of colonization, genocide, and occupation in East Turkistan must be recognized as part of a broader global threat posed by authoritarianism and unchecked state violence.
Salih Hudayar, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Security for the East Turkistan Government in Exile, underscored the global responsibility to support East Turkistan’s cause under international law:
“The United Nations General Assembly Resolution 3070, adopted in 1973, reaffirms the inalienable right of all peoples under colonial domination to self-determination, freedom, and independence. This principle applies to East Turkistan, and the global community must fulfill its obligations under international law to offer moral, material, and political support to our people.”
China’s false claims over East Turkistan are not rooted in historical truth but in fabricated narratives designed to legitimize the violent subjugation of a free and sovereign nation. On October 12, 1949, Chinese communist forces invaded East Turkistan with Soviet support, initiating one of the longest and most brutal occupations in modern history. Since then, East Turkistan—rebranded by Beijing as “Xinjiang [The Colony/New Territory]”—has become synonymous with modern-day concentration camps, forced labor camps, mass sterilizations, and the relentless suppression of Uyghur culture, religion, and identity. Every day the international community remains silent is another day of impunity for China.
The East Turkistani people demand that the International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecute Chinese officials, including Xi Jinping, for genocide and crimes against humanity, and we call upon the state parties to the Rome Statute to support our legal complaints. Additionally, we urge the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to address China’s state responsibility for these grave violations of international law.
The East Turkistani people’s commitment is unwavering: we will continue the struggle for independence until East Turkistan is free. We call upon the international community to stand with us in this fight for justice, sovereignty, and dignity. The future of millions of Uyghurs and other Turkic peoples depends on the world’s moral courage and willingness to act.
