For the first time, visitors from a free society joined Beijing’s staged tours of “Xinjiang.” Their words cannot cover up genocide.
by Shohret Hoshur
According to China’s white paper published four years ago, the government organized visits to Xinjiang on over 100 occasions, bringing over 1,000 diplomats and journalists to witness what it calls “the reality of the Uyghur people.” Most of these groups came from the Middle East, Central Asia, and African countries—regions where poverty is widespread, the media is controlled, and corruption remains entrenched. China uses such visits as part of its ongoing whitewashing campaign to conceal the Uyghur reality. Most recently, another group from Türkiye—a country ethnically and culturally closest to the Uyghurs, from whom moral support is especially expected—joined these pro-China delegations.
Last week, Turkish journalists visited East Turkistan (Xinjiang in Chinese terminology) at the invitation of the Chinese Consulate, in coordination with the Turkish Chinese Friendship Foundation. After a week-long visit, the group appeared on TELE-1 TV, where they openly denied the ongoing Uyghur genocide.
Of course, impartiality cannot be expected from a group that proudly declares itself a friend of China. Naturally, the “facts” presented in their program were curated to suit the visit’s purpose: strengthening bilateral friendship. The broadcast was filled with comical descriptions, illogical judgments, and twisted “evidence.” Old-style communist propaganda may have lost its power. However, in modern times, it is repackaged with nationalist or liberal tones that can still mislead outsiders—though it cannot deceive those who closely follow the region.
Therefore, I felt it necessary to make two serious comments about this interview.
The “Dancing People” Illusion
The interviewee, Merdan Yanardağ, described seeing people dancing and enjoying themselves, claiming this as proof of happiness. He even noted that it was not a holiday or festival.
Yet anyone with basic knowledge of human societies knows that dancing typically occurs during weddings, festivals, ceremonies, or concerts. It may be unusual if one or two people start dancing spontaneously in public. But if hundreds do so at once, it is certainly organized. Yanardağ claimed he saw no organizer—but this is precisely the problem. In such cases, the organizer remains hidden, often directing the event through electronic surveillance, especially in a region under genocidal control.
Was Yanardağ naïve because he had never experienced such state-orchestrated performances in Türkiye? Or did he deliberately avoid questioning what he saw because it suited the narrative of his trip? Either way, his inability—or unwillingness—to apply basic common sense is telling.
Once again, this shows China’s cunning skill: exploiting gullible or shameless visitors to stage temporary victories. However, fakery is evident to anyone with basic social awareness and logical judgment. A propaganda campaign relying on people of this quality cannot achieve lasting success.
The Language Deception
Another visitor, Mehmet Ali Gursel, claimed he witnessed that Uyghur was not banned, pointing to bilingual billboards and a Uyghur-language newspaper.
This, however, is a superficial illusion. What has been destroyed is education in the Uyghur language, its use in government offices, and its prospects for survival. Billboards in two scripts exist only to disguise reality. A handful of Uyghur-language newspapers or radio programs function not to preserve the language, but to transmit government propaganda to Uyghurs who cannot read Chinese.
A language survives through natural social use, not through staged symbols. Its fragile presence is due to Uyghur cultural loyalty, not China’s “mercy.”
The “No Camps” Denial
The visitor also said he saw no internment camps in Urumqi and heard no mention of them.
Expecting the Chinese government to showcase camps or allow victims to speak openly about them is absurd. China itself admitted to the camps two years after they were established, rebranding them as “vocational training centers.” While it later claimed most “students” had graduated, no evidence exists of their reintegration into society. Meanwhile, mosques stand empty, public squares are deserted, and Uyghur neighborhoods are silenced.
If these Turkish visitors truly wished to verify the camps’ existence, they need not have gone to Urumqi. Among the 30,000 Uyghurs living in Istanbul, 95 out of 100 would report at least one to five missing family members—disappearances that can only be explained by the camps.
Absurd Claims About Uyghur Migration
Yanardağ further claimed that Uyghurs enjoy such a high standard of living that they would never move to Türkiye, even if forced. If so, how did more than 30,000 Uyghurs register with Türkiye’s Immigration Office? His words reflect not logic or truth, but a propagandist’s mission: to justify his trip, repay China for its hospitality, and secure invitations for future visits.
Of course, members of brotherly nations have sometimes sold each other out in history. But selling each other so cheaply has rarely been seen.
It is strange to see members of a nation that ruled three continents for 500 years flattering a tyrant. I never expected such lies from a member of a people who lived next door to Europe—lies told for the sake of a small ego.
The Contrast: Uyghur Resilience
From the statements in this interview, I was reminded of the principled spirit of our people: those who did not renounce their religion even under the gun; those who refused to eat Chinese food even when poor and on the verge of starvation; and our intellectuals—Ilham Tohti, Abduqadir Jalalidin, Yalqun Rozi, Perhat Tursun—who spoke truth even at the cost of life imprisonment.
I believe that even if China organizes 1,000 more such visits, and even if 100,000 of these visitors return to their homeland and tell stories about China, it will not be able to atone for the genocide happening in the region. China will pay the price for this crime. The Uyghur people will be further strengthened by this massacre and will come out safe.
What we are waiting for from the world is not pity, but for people to fulfill their human responsibility in the face of this tragedy. Those who do not follow this and do the opposite will be punished by history. No matter where the wrong path begins or how it starts, its final destination is ignorance. No matter how great and sweet the benefit may seem, if it is obtained by deviating from humane ways, it is poison to the body. Human history has never crowned those who support the oppressor.
So let us leave the Turkish delegation with their 3.5-hour propaganda video. Let’s see what other funny words they come up with, what other monkey games they show or play, and listen to what other miraculous flattery they utter.
Shohret Hoshur (who until 2025 used the pseudonym of Kok Bayraq) is a political émigré from East Turkestan (Ch. Xinjiang) and an opponent of the Sinicization of his homeland. He left China in 1995 when his journalism got him “into trouble with the authorities,”and is now living in Washington, D.C.. His unique thoughts and feelings published in Taipei Times and Global Voice comment on the ongoing Uyghur genocide.
