“Bitter Winter” readers know the “lonely Uyghur” protests in Amsterdam. He tells us how China tried to prevent him from testifying at The Hague’s symbolic trial of Xi Jinping.
by Abdurehim Gheni Uyghur
Since 2017, I have lost contact with 19 immediate family members in East Turkistan (Ch. Xinjiang). I do not know their whereabouts or even if they are alive. These disappeared relatives are living proof of China’s ongoing genocide against Uyghurs and represent countless other families who have suffered similar fates.
On July 8, 2024, I was invited to testify at The Hague’s Court of the Citizens of the World, an international people’s tribunal, against Xi Jinping. Two days before the hearing, the Chinese government pressured me by forcing my father and brother, who are in detention, to call me and demand I withdraw from the trial. Despite this, I did not succumb to the threats. Instead, I presented the video evidence of my father and brother’s forced plea in court as proof of China’s coercive tactics. Following my testimony, my father was tortured to death in a detention camp on September 16, 2024, as a form of reprisal.
The Chinese government has not only extended its oppressive reach to my relatives in occupied East Turkistan but has also targeted me—a political activist in the democratic and secure Netherlands. They have attempted to silence my voice through numerous threats, including death threats, and have even orchestrated what I believe to be a deliberate car accident in 2021. Although this incident temporarily sidelined me from protests and activism, I recovered and resumed my fight for the freedom and independence of my people with renewed vigor. I firmly believe in the triumph of justice over ignorance, light over darkness, truth over falsehood, and courage over oppression. I remain steadfast in my resolve, unwavering in my mission as a freedom fighter.
On December 10, 1948, the United Nations adopted a significant document with the approval of its member states, establishing it as a landmark in human history. This document, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, declares that all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. It affirms that everyone is entitled to respect, freedom, and justice without discrimination.
Regrettably, in our contemporary world—76 years after its adoption— crimes against humanity continue unabated. People are still discriminated against based on their ethnicity or beliefs, and innocent individuals demanding their rights are subjected to oppression, imprisonment, and unimaginable cruelty.
As is widely known, millions of innocent Uyghurs in East Turkistan, under Chinese occupation, are currently enduring inhumane treatment in internment camps. The Uyghur language, culture, history, and religion are systematically being erased. Uyghur children are forcibly taken from their families and placed in state-run orphanages where they are stripped of their native language, culture, and religion, molded into a Chinese identity. Uyghur women are subjected to forced marriages with Han Chinese men, sterilization, and forced abortions.
Uyghurs are being forced into slave labor not only in factories within East Turkistan but also in distant regions across China. Furthermore, Uyghurs’ organs are being harvested against their will and sold on the black market. The crimes committed by the Chinese government in East Turkistan have been officially recognized as genocide and crimes against humanity by the governments and parliaments of countries such as the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, and Taiwan.
On July 12, 2024, the Court of the Citizens of the World in the Netherlands issued an arrest warrant for Xi Jinping, charging him with 11 types of crimes, including genocide and crimes against humanity in East Turkistan. On October 10, 2024, the European Parliament passed a resolution declaring that forced labor imposed on Uyghurs constitutes a crime against humanity and carries the risk of ethnic genocide. It called for sanctions on senior Chinese officials and entities involved in human rights abuses.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights also released a report on August 31, 2022, confirming the existence of severe human rights violations in East Turkistan. In short, in the 21st century, a tragedy that the world vowed would “never happen again” is unfolding in East Turkistan. The genocide of the Uyghur people continues unabated. The Chinese Communist government flagrantly disregards the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international outcry, exploiting the inaction of global institutions and nations. This is evident in their systematic and deliberate violation of every article of the Declaration. For me personally, the reason I have protested against the Chinese government every weekend for over three years in Amsterdam’s Dam Square is clear: millions of my Uyghur brethren are still suffering unimaginable atrocities in China’s internment camps.
Today, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights exists in name only. In the face of atrocities committed by the Chinese Communist regime, nations, organizations, and leaders have failed to take meaningful action.
I refuse to stand idly by or be complicit in silence. I call upon governments, organizations, intellectuals, and compassionate people worldwide to rise and hold China accountable for its crimes. Let us end the Uyghur genocide and protect the integrity of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. As a Uyghur freedom fighter, it is my duty to amplify the cries of my oppressed people and strive for their freedom and independence.
Abdurehim Gheni is a Uyghur activist living in the Netherlands who became famous for his solo protests in Dam Square in Amsterdam. He also educates tourists to the reality of the Uyghur genocide.
