WUC has increased its European advocacy activities
Munich: By posting a video update on the social media platform X about their recent trip to Brussels, the World Uyghur Congress (WUC) has stepped up its lobbying activities in Europe.
In advance of the next EU-China Human Rights Dialogue, the tour, which was organized by WUC Vice President Zumretay Arkin, was intended to increase awareness of the continued violations of human rights that the Uyghur community in East Turkestan faces.
The tweet said, “The WUC Vice President Zumret Erkin spoke about WUC’s advocacy trip to Brussels ahead of the EU-China Human Rights Dialogue, highlighting WUC’s efforts to raise #Uyghur voices within the EU Parliament.”
Arkin emphasized in the film the significance of the two-day lobbying sessions with European Commission and European Parliament members.
https://x.com/UyghurCongress/status/1922929131345367097
“We’re here to bring the voice of the Uyghur people within the European Parliament and to raise awareness on the Uyghur genocide,” she said.
A number of urgent human rights issues were discussed, such as arbitrary detention, enforced disappearances, individual persecution cases, forced labor, forced sterilization, and the more general issues of gender, women’s rights, and children’s rights under the policies of the Chinese government in the area.
During a recent discussion at the European Parliament, Arkin again emphasized the connection between human rights and environmental challenges. Tibetan and Uyghur activists gathered at the gathering to talk about the ecological damage brought about by infrastructure projects undertaken by the Chinese government.
“We just left a conference in the European Parliament with Tibetan activists on the eco-side of Tibet, on the construction of hydroelectric dams, which are ruining the Tibetan plateau and rivers,” Arkin said.
“Ecocide is also happening in East Turkestan,” she said, highlighting the need for oppressed groups’ ongoing unity. She said, “We’re here to stand in solidarity with our Tibetan allies to see how we can foster solidarity further and build our movement stronger.”
The WUC’s advocacy campaign is a component of larger initiatives to draw attention to the Uyghur people’s predicament on a worldwide scale and encourage significant action from international organizations. Mass monitoring, forced assimilation, arbitrary incarceration in reeducation centers, and cultural oppression are just a few of the harsh obstacles that Uyghurs in China must contend with.
There are restrictions on religious activities, and there have been claims of forced labor and sterilization. Some have called these acts crimes against humanity or possibly genocide by international standards, and they have been denounced worldwide.