Press Release: For immediate release
22 September 2020
East Turkistan Government in Exile
Contact: contact@east-turkistan.net | +1 (202) 599-2244, Ext: 1
The East Turkistan Government in Exile (ETGE) thanks the U.S. House of Representatives, and especially Congressman James McGovern, for passing the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA). The bill calls for enforcing human rights standards to end the import of goods made with Uyghur and other Turkic peoples forced labor or slave labor in Chinese Occupied East Turkistan.
The bill passed overwhelmingly with 406 votes in favor and 3 against it. ETGE Prime Minister, Salih Hudayar stated that , “the people of East Turkistan are truly grateful to the US House of Representatives for passing this much needed bill, we urge the Senate to swiftly pass their version of the bill and call on President Trump to sign it before the end of his current term.”
The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act would also require the US Secretary of State to determine if the practice of forced labor/slave labor or other crimes against against Uyghurs and other Turkic peoples in East Turkistan constitutes genocide as defined in U.S. law.
On August 28, 2020, the East Turkistan Government in Exile organized global demonstrations calling on the international community to recognize and take action against China’s genocide of Uyghurs and other Turkic peoples in East Turkistan. The ETGE sent a letter to US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, urging the US Government to recognize China’s atrocities as a genocide.
During the vote on the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, Representative Chris Smith (R. – New Jersey) stated, “make no mistake, this is Xi Jinping’s genocide” in reference to the genocide of Uyghurs and other Turkic peoples.
The ETGE urges American and other western companies around the world to divest from China and relocate their operations to other countries where human rights is respected. The ETGE also urges people across the world to Boycott Made in China and calls on governments around the world to recognize and act against China’s genocide and other crimes against humanity occurring in East Turkistan.
