World Uyghur Congress applauds EU Parliament's recognition of China's violations

The World Uyghur Congress (WUC) applauds the European Parliament's unanimous passage on Thursday of a resolution recognising that the Chinese government's systemic human rights violations against the Uyghur people in East Turkistan "amount to crimes against humanity and a serious risk of genocide."

The resolution, which calls on the European Union (EU) and its member states to "take all necessary steps in accordance with the UN Genocide Convention to end these atrocities," is a historic call for accountability mechanisms to bring justice to the Uyghur people.

"The Xinjiang Police Files have clearly served as a wake-up call for the European Parliament to recognise the gravity of the situation and the need for swift action," WUC President Dolkun Isa said.

"The EU and its Member States must now act on these calls and do everything they can, in collaboration with governments and civil society around the world, to end the Uyghur genocide," he added, according to a press release from the Uyghur Congress.

The European Parliament joins the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Lithuania, the Czech Republic, Belgium, France, and Ireland in recognising the crimes against humanity and (serious risk of) genocide being perpetrated against the Uyghur people, confirming the findings of the independent Uyghur Tribunal.

In addition to recognising a "serious risk of" genocide, the resolution includes important other appeals, such as a request to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to publish her independent report on the situation in East Turkistan as soon as possible, noting the European Parliament's regret that the High Commissioner "failed to clearly hold the Chinese government accountable."

The WUC also welcomed the passage of another resolution in the European Parliament on a new trade instrument to prohibit the use of forced labour in the production of goods.

The resolution makes strong recommendations to the European Commission ahead of the latter's September proposal for an instrument to prohibit the importation of forced labour products into the EU market.

As the US Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) takes effect on June 21, a strong EU mechanism to ensure uniform responses to Uyghur forced labour across jurisdictions will be critical.

According to the press release, the WUC expressed heartfelt gratitude to all Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) who made critical contributions to both resolutions, demonstrating their longtime, steadfast commitment to defending and promoting Uyghur human rights and freedoms.

As a next step, the WUC urges the EU and its member states to act on the European Parliament's calls, particularly to take all necessary steps to end the Uyghur genocide in accordance with their obligations under the UN Genocide Convention.