The Uyghurs are an indigenous people who live in the western region of China known as Xinjiang. They are currently a minority in the population, and many people have been imprisoned as the Uyghurs are often falsely accused of committing acts of terrorism.
Omer Kanat, executive committee chairman of the World Uyghur Congress stated,
“Every household, every family had three or four people taken away.”
What leads to this startling piece of information is that because of the current social climate in the country, Uyghurs are placed in detainment camps and undergo a very severe brainwashing process. There are no limits to the length of detention for the detainees and they are forced to praise the Communist Party.
Maya Wang, a researcher for the Human Rights Watch, said,
“It’s completely unlawful- the authorities provide no legal documentation to the families…”
The Guardian states that at least 120,000 Uyghurs have been confined to the camps, whose political morals parallels that of Chairman Mao’s era. Xinjiang’s “re-education camps” have been flooded with detainees, which is becoming increasingly harder to get out of and is compared to a “black hole.”
Buzzfeed had even dubbed this part of China a “21st-century police state” just last year. Reports to police have gotten more strict over time, for even naming your child Muhammad will get you reported.
Lu Kang, a spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry stated,
“I want to stress that people in Xinjiang enjoy a happy and peaceful working and living situation.”
when asked about the security measures set in place by the Chinese government. However, contrary to this statement, many analysts have found out that the restrictions actually punish the region’s population of around 9 million Uyghurs. According to statistics, China’s controlled court system convicts 99.9% of it’s accused, which leads to direct and abundant consequences for ethnic minorities such as the Uyghurs. This leads to detention and these centers to be held as common practices in China with no real forces acting against this system. Over time, we can only see what will happen to the population of Uyghurs in the fluctuating climate of China’s society.
