The persecution of Uighur people and why that matters


A prevailing concept that is being brought up more and more in societal discussion is the concept of pluralism. From a global standpoint, it refers to looking outside our own borders and being aware of current affairs, cultural events, incidents, etc. that are taking place in other nations. One of the most pressing issues that deserves more of our awareness is the mass genocide and detainment of the Uighur people in Xinjiang, China.

It’s estimated that more than a million Uighur people (mostly muslims) have been detained and placed into one of the hundreds of “re-education” camps spread out across Xinjiang, where they are subject to forced labour, torture, rape, and sexual abuse.

To give context, the Uighur community of Xinjiang were originally nomadic Turks, until their region of land was annexed by China in 1949. They have a current population of roughly 12 million people, and they speak their own language as well as standard Xinjiang, though they only make up less than half of the region’s population.

A majority of the community are practicing Muslims, which has created a lot of tension between their way of life and China’s communist regime. This conflict, plus recent mass migration to their area, has threatened the Uighur people’s livelihood and culture.

Much of this agitation can be traced back to several events, including riots in Urumqi led by Uighur activists in 2009, who claimed to be fighting against Chinese oppression/discrimination. The riots resulted in almost 200 people killed. The Chinese government deemed these acts as terrorist activity, and since then have been taking extreme measures to oppress what they believe to be non-conforming behavior, including the demolition of countless Muslim mosques.

In 2017, President Xi began setting up large scale “re-education” camps, and allowed the detainment of Uighur men and women over charges such as having long beards, wearing veils, or going overseas for vacations.

At these camps, men are forced to pick cotton and work in factories, while also being subject to torture. Women are sterilised so as to eliminate any potential increase in the Uighur population. Many of the women are also taken by the guards, where they are raped and sexually abused.

Constantly under surveillance, the men and women must learn about Chinese patriotism and the benefits of communism, as the government’s attempt to “re-educate” the community, though former prisoners stated they were just trying to beat them out of their religion.

In July, many European countries as well as other representatives of the UN human rights council condemned China for their leadership and actions, though the United States didn’t comment. As a matter of fact, it was not until the last day of former President Trump’s administration, that a statement was released citing China’s behavior to be “genocide”.

Going back to this notion of pluralism, it’s important to realize that it simply doesn’t mean being aware of what’s going on outside our homes. It’s about realizing how relevant this is to all of us. It’s common to dissociate ourselves from events others are dealing with elsewhere, and as a result we tend to fail at realizing the gravity of those situations.

Despite cultural and ethinic differences, the underlying fact is we’re all human, and we all think the same, and we all want the same things. Having a pluralistic outlook is recognizing the humanity in all of us, and really grasp what others might be going through, for it also instills in us a sense of gratitude, and wanting to take action.

Unfortunately, there isn’t much as civil society we can do regarding the persecution of the Uighur community. Due to government sanctions, it can be difficult to donate, though there are plenty of organizations fighting against Uighur oppression.

Another thing to do is spread awareness, and educate others, not just about this event, but about this whole idea of being a global citizen – of appreciating the reality of what’s happening in other parts of the world.