RESEARCH REPORT UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES (UNHCR) DEVELOPING SOLUTIONS TO ERADICATE THE MALTREATMENT OF UYGHUR TURKS IN CHINA MELİKE KOCA MUNDP 2021 – Commitment to Development – Research Report Committee: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Agenda Item: Developing solutions to eradicate the maltreatment of Uyghur Turks in China Student Officer & Role: Melike Koca, Deputy Chair Basic Overview of the Issue The maltreatment of Uyghur Turks is an abuse of human rights and effectuated by the Chinese government in and around the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. There are more than 11 million Uyghur Turks in Xinjiang where unlawful acts are perpetrated by the Chinese government. These acts are labeled as ‘’genocide’’ by many human rights experts, non- governmental organizations (NGOs), government officials, and also the U.S. government. More than one million Muslims, with the majority of Uygur Turks, have been held in detention camps without any legal base by the Chinese government since 2017. The aforementioned unlawful policy has been pursued under the Xi Jinping administration of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). According to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, suppressing religious practices, severe ill-treatment, and political indoctrination are considered to be human rights abuses. There are more than 85 identified camps, where at least one million Uighurs are forced to be interned. Even though the Chinese government has abnegated the existence of camps, they have acknowledged these camps as ‘’re-education centers’’ for Uighurs after the images of camp constructions Figure 1 - Locations of "re-education camps" for Uighurs in Xinjiang, western China, also known as East Turkestan. were released. Explanation of Important Terms Ethnocide Ethnocide is the deliberate destruction of an ethnic culture (Merriam-Webster). This term is also related to the term ‘’cultural cleansing’’. Since the term ethnocide could be used in different meanings and contexts, the general approach could be interpreted as inclusion and exclusion in law and policies according to the terms anthropology. General genocide The term general genocide was first mentioned by the lawyer Raphael Lemkin in 1944. MUNDP 2021 – Commitment to Development 1 Committee: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Agenda Item: Developing solutions to eradicate the maltreatment of Uyghur Turks in China Student Officer & Role: Melike Koca, Deputy Chair General genocide is described as "acts and measures are undertaken to destroy nations' or ethnic groups' culture through spiritual, national, and cultural destruction" by the Armenian Genocide Museum. Re-education Centers The re-education camps are officially named ‘’Vocational Education and Training Centers’’ by the Chinese government. These camps were created under CCP General Secretary Xi Jinping’s administration in the Xinjiang area. It was extrapolated that over one and a half million people, including mostly Uyghurs but also Kazakhs and Kyrgyz (mainly Turkic Muslims), are being held in the aforementioned internment camps. Detailed Background of the Issue The Xinjiang Region The Xinjiang region, an autonomous territory in the Northwest of China, has borders to eight different countries, including the Russian Federation, Afghanistan, and India. It is officially known as the “Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region,” and it is home to a number of different ethnic groups - the most prominent one being the Turkic Uyghurs. Although the policy of the Chinese government is to allow ethnic groups to maintain their cultural identities, several ethnic tensions have arisen. One of the main issues in the region is the conflict between the Uyghurs and Han. In 2017, it was reported by the Human Rights Watch that the Chinese authorities have begun to operate “re-education camps” in the Xinjiang region to indoctrinate the Uyghur Turks. Various governments and human rights experts have accused the government of China of the mistreatment of the Uyghur Turks. Restrictions Imposed on the Uyghurs (1990-2017) At the beginning of 1996, Chinese authorities in Xinjiang launched the “strike hard” campaign, which included measures targeting cell phones, computers, and religious materials belonging to the Uyghurs. The measures taken were due to the growing tensions between the Uyghurs and the Han Chinese in the Xinjiang region. In addition, long beards were banned, and women were not allowed to wear veils in public places. Since these were MUNDP 2021 – Commitment to Development 2 Committee: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Agenda Item: Developing solutions to eradicate the maltreatment of Uyghur Turks in China Student Officer & Role: Melike Koca, Deputy Chair direct human rights violations, the Uyghur Turks began to protest, which resulted in arrests and executions. The campaign was relaunched in 2014 with more repressive measures. The DNA samples, iris scans, and voice samples of Uyghurs in the Xinjiang region were collected. Also, people were tracked through CCTV footage and ID cards. Even though this, again, is a direct violation of human rights, and the Chinese government has received criticism and condemnation from the international community, the government has continued with its repressive measures. Other restrictions include Uyghurs not being able to build their own mosques, fast during Ramadan, and name their children with common Muslim names. In addition, Uyghurs are not allowed to have their children attend an Islamic private school or mosques. Accusations Against the Chinese Government There are numerous specific accusations towards the government of China on the issue of Uyghur Turks. Human rights experts have demanded the International Criminal Court and United Nations Human Rights Council to investigate the internment camps in the Xinjiang region. In terms of maltreatment such as torture, forced sterilization, and forced labor, some governments and human rights experts have alleged that China is committing an “Uyghur genocide.” Torture and Mistreatment A remarkable number of human rights experts consider the Chinese re-education camps as cruel mistreatment towards the Uyghur refugee group in China. According to a report published by Human Rights Watch, the Chinese government conducted “mass arbitrary detention, torture and mistreatment” of Uighur Turks in the region. As a first-hand source, an Uyghur Turk living in China has stated in an interview that the Chinese government torture Uyghurs by hanging them from their arms for hours and resorting to violence cruelly. Forced Sterilization The state is already struggling with widespread criticism for keeping mostly Muslim Uyghurs in detention camps. The Chinese government has demanded the existence of the detention camps before defending them as a necessary precaution against terrorism in terms of citizens' security due to separatist violence in the Xinjiang region. Unfortunately, the practice of forced MUNDP 2021 – Commitment to Development 3 Committee: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Agenda Item: Developing solutions to eradicate the maltreatment of Uyghur Turks in China Student Officer & Role: Melike Koca, Deputy Chair sterilization is a cruel action that still takes place in the 21st century; it overwhelmingly targets minorities. A Chinese-published “Analysis Report on Population Change in Xinjiang" refutes these statements, attributing the decline of the Uighur Muslim population to the “eradication of religious extremism. An Figure 2 - Birth rates in Uyghur areas between 2010-2017 AP investigation in 2020 proves the Uighur women are forced to have regular pregnancy checks, IUDs, sterilizations, and also abortion. Forced Labor Many UN members have accused China of the fact that the Uighur Turks are forced laborers, and their recruitment in firms is completely against the law and human rights. According to the Australian Strategic Policy Institute’s report, over 80,000 million Uyghur Turks were sent to factories directly from detention camps between 2017 to 2019. According to a report by Citizen Power Initiatives for China (CPIC), Xinjiang is home to 84% of the country's cotton and exports material to many of China's clothing manufacturers. Lately, a non-profit organization from Washington DC’s report stated that China has been using forced labor camps and prison labor to profit off of the cotton industry in its Xinjiang region. Turkish-Chinese Relations In recent years, due to the separatist movements in the Xinjiang region, Chinese and Turkish governments have started to strengthen their relations and cooperation. Turkey has also increased deportations of Uyghurs to China. After the release of an insight view of the detention camps, Turkey has specifically stated its concerns and condemnation. Turkey’s Foreign Ministry has stated that Uighur Turks are facing torture in concentration camps, “The reintroduction of detention camps in the 21st century and the systematic assimilation policy of Chinese authorities against the Uighur Turks is a great embarrassment for humanity.’’ In short, the Turkish government has called upon every member state of the UN to collaborate on the issue of maltreatment of Uyghur Turks in China to conclude the violation of human rights. MUNDP 2021 – Commitment to Development 4 Committee: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Agenda Item: Developing solutions to eradicate the maltreatment of Uyghur Turks in China Student Officer & Role: Melike Koca, Deputy Chair Uyghur Children in Xinjiang