5 February 2026
Press Release – For Immediate Release
East Turkistan Government in Exile (ETGE)
East-Turkistan.Net
contact@East-Turkistan.Net
WASHINGTON—The East Turkistan Government in Exile (ETGE) today commemorated the 29th anniversary of the 1997 Ghulja Massacre, honoring the victims of one of the most notorious atrocities committed by the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in occupied East Turkistan. The ETGE renewed its call for decisive international action to end China’s ongoing genocide, dismantle transnational repression, and support the restoration of East Turkistan’s national independence.
On February 5, 1997, thousands of Uyghurs, Kazakhs, and other Turkic peoples peacefully marched in the city of Ghulja to protest religious, political, and cultural repression and decades of Chinese colonial occupation. Chinese occupation forces responded with live gunfire and mass arrests. Hundreds were killed, and thousands more were detained, tortured, disappeared, or later executed. Uyghur organizations and rights advocates regard the Ghulja Massacre as a pivotal turning point that foreshadowed the large-scale genocidal campaign that escalated across East Turkistan after 2014.
To mark the anniversary, the East Turkistan Government in Exile organized commemorations in Washington, D.C., and internationally, including events before the U.S. Department of State. The ETGE emphasized that remembrance must be matched with enforcement and action.
Speaking from Australia, ETGE President Dr. Mamtimin Ala highlighted that “the Ghulja massacre persists as an ongoing genocide. We remember. We will not forget. We will not let the perpetrators enjoy impunity.”
Speaking in front of the U.S. Department of State, ETGE Foreign Minister Salih Hudayar underscored that the Ghulja Massacre was not an isolated tragedy but part of a continuous colonial project rooted in China’s 1949 military occupation of East Turkistan. He emphasized that the imposed Chinese term “Xinjiang,” meaning “New Territory,” itself reflects Chinese imperialism and colonialism.
Hudayar outlined urgent policy demands aligned with America First leadership, calling on the United States to formally recognize East Turkistan as an occupied country on par with Tibet; appoint a Special Coordinator for East Turkistani Issues at the U.S. Department of State; impose stronger sanctions on Chinese officials and entities responsible for genocide; ban imports produced through forced labor; and support international accountability mechanisms to prosecute genocide and crimes against humanity.
He also warned of China’s expanding transnational repression, including intimidation, coercion, and infiltration of the East Turkistani/Uyghur diaspora by PRC intelligence and United Front Work Department operatives. Hudayar cited the April 2025 arrest in Sweden of World Uyghur Congress co-founder and spokesperson on espionage charges as evidence of a broader pattern, calling it “the tip of the iceberg,” and urged designation of the UFWD as a national security threat and prosecution of Chinese agents and assets operating in the diaspora.
February 5, 2026, is observed by East Turkistanis worldwide as a day of national mourning and resistance. The ETGE reaffirmed that recognition without enforcement has failed and reiterated its commitment to justice, accountability, and the decolonization, liberation, and restoration of East Turkistan’s national independence.