Activism in Exile: Defending Uyghur rights and identity

Event details

Since 2017 the Chinese Regime has carried out severe oppression of the Uyghur people in East Turkistan (Xinjiang). Millions of innocent Uyghurs have been arbitrarily detained in concentration camps. While the Chinese Regime denies its human rights violations in East Turkistan (Xinjiang),  a few Uyghurs abroad have dared to speak to the world on behalf of those detained in concentration camps. Regardless of all risks, they decided to fight for the rights of  their people. Memet T. Atawulla is the first student among Uyghur students abroad to testify about their relatives detained in the concentration camps by the Chinese authorities. He is one of the few who started this campaign in 2018. As a result of this move, the Chinese government’s genocidal crimes were exposed to the world.

In this talk Memet will share how he, along with other activists, has engaged with different activities in Turkey against China’s suppression of the Uyghurs in East Turkistan (Xinjiang).  Shortly after Memet arrived in Turkey, Chinese authorities tried to force him to return by threatening his family. After he did not heed the threats, Chinese police first took his two brothers to concentration camps and then arrested his mother. Since then he has had no contact with his family. In this talk Memet will show us what activism in exile under oppression looks like.