UK Parliament hosts forum on genocide and human rights violations in East Turkestan

Baroness Helena Kennedy LT Casey underlined that the atrocities met the legal definition of genocide. She said, “As a human rights lawyer, I have been involved for many years and have heard harrowing stories of women kept in concentration camps, where they are forced to give up their faith and are subjected to torture and sexual violence. It has to happen. This evidence is supported by satellite images, which highlight the alarming scale of these camps.

Rodney Dixon Casey, legal adviser on East Turkestan’s complaint to the International Criminal Court (ICC), called on the UK and other states to take immediate legal action. he/she commented, “There are legal routes available which require support from the UK Government. As seen in Argentina, universal jurisdiction is a powerful tool for holding criminals accountable. Additionally, the International Criminal Court (ICC) is relevant, particularly given the precedent established in the Myanmar case, which allows the ICC to claim jurisdiction over cross-border crimes.

Saira Soytbay, vice president of the exiled East Turkistan government and an informant and witness to China’s concentration camps, provided harrowing details of the atrocities she witnessed in the camps. he/she particularly highlighted the forced separation of children from their families.

“China is forcibly separating nearly one million Uyghur, Kazakh, Kyrgyz and other Turkic children from their families and placing them in state-run boarding schools,” he/she said. The purpose of these so-called boarding schools is to erase their cultural identity and turn them into loyal Chinese citizens. he/she also called on the international community, including the UK, to fulfill its promise of “never again”.

Salih Hudayar, the foreign minister of the exiled East Turkestan government, stressed that the root cause of the genocide was China’s illegal occupation of East Turkestan. he/she called for the restoration of the independence of East Turkistan, saying that true peace and justice for the people of the region can only be achieved through self-determination.

Lara Strangways, head of business and human rights at GRC Human Rights, drew attention to the economic aspect of the issue, noting that private companies may be involved in exploiting Uyghur forced labor within their supply chains.

During the programme, Members of Parliament, including Iain Duncan Smith, criticized Britain’s inadequate response to the ongoing atrocities. he/she particularly condemned the failure to prevent goods produced through forced labor in China from entering the UK market. he/she urged the UK to take strong action to protect the rights of the Uyghur people and hold China accountable.