Chinese Diplomat Engages with US Lawmakers, Media Executives
A top Chinese official who denied China's alleged genocide against the Uyghurs met November 2 with top executives at Condé Nast, a major U.S. media company. Huang Ping, China’s Consul General in New York, discussed the growth of the Chinese market, according to Condé Nast's website.
Matchmaking App Raises Concerns of Han-Uyghur Assimilation
A Chinese company in Xinjiang has launched a matchmaking app encouraging inter-ethnic marriages between Uyghur women and Chinese men, sparking concerns among experts about Beijing's broader efforts to assimilate Uyghurs into the Han Chinese population. The Radio Free Asia report says the app charges a 15-yuan fee to provide information about Uyghur women interested in marrying individuals from China's inner provinces.
Chinese Embassy Rejects Plea to Release Critically Ill Uyghur Prisoner in Xinjiang
The Chinese Embassy in Turkey has rejected a request to release Mexmutjan Memet, a Uyghur man suffering from liver disease and serving a 20-year sentence in Xinjiang for violating “China’s policy on the number of children ethnic minorities can have,” and for providing “religious education to his children and [traveling] to Turkey,” according to Radio Free Asia. Memet is being treated at a prison hospital but sought to rejoin his family in Istanbul for medical treatment.
Western Companies Accused of Purchasing Carbon Credits Linked to Forced Uyghur Labor in China
BP and Spotify, among other companies, purchased carbon credits linked to potential forced Uyghur labor in China, according to The Guardian and Follow the Money, a Dutch investigative newsroom. According to investigators, credits were sourced from the Bachu carbon project run by South Pole, the world’s largest carbon consultancy. The project claimed environmental and social benefits but was associated with forced labor risks at a biomass power plant in Xinjiang known to South Pole in 2021.
Pakistan Grants Temporary Stay Extension for Uyghur Families Facing Deportation
Pakistani authorities have temporarily extended the stay of Uyghur families in Rawalpindi facing deportation under an order to expel some 100 illegal migrants by Nov. 1, according to Radio Free Asia. The migrants who lack proper documentation are mostly descendants of Uyghurs who migrated from Xinjiang to Afghanistan and then Pakistan. The extension's duration is unspecified pending parliamentary discussion.
Biden's Fentanyl Deal Sparks Outcry Among Uyghurs
Uyghur groups are criticizing U.S. President Joe Biden for lifting sanctions on a blacklisted forensics lab in a fentanyl deal with China, calling it a betrayal during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, according to The Daily Mail. The Uyghur rights groups argue that this could harm Uyghurs without benefiting the U.S.
News in brief
A Uyghur poet’s memoir about living under repressive rule in Xinjiang, Waiting to be Arrested at Night: A Uyghur Poet’s Memoir of China’s Genocide, has gained recognition from prestigious U.S. publications, with The Washington Post listing it among "50 notable works of nonfiction" and Time magazine including it in "The 100 Must-Read Books of 2023." In an interview with VOA, Tahir Hamut Izgil, who left China for the U.S. in 2017, expressed gratitude for the honors, emphasizing their potential to raise global awareness about the Uyghur genocide.
Quote of note
"As the world takes notice of my storytelling, my memoir stands as a testament to the resilience of the Uyghur people amid the challenges posed by China's genocide.” – Tahir Hamut Izgil, Uyghur poet and author of Waiting to be Arrested at Night: A Uyghur Poet’s Memoir of China’s Genocide.
