Rushan Abbas, founder of the organization Campaign for Uyghurs, spoke at the Hinckley Institute of Politics on Wednesday, informing visitors of the current political landscape in her homeland of East Turkistan.

Campaign for Uyghurs

Under the Chinese regime, Uyghur people are under constant surveillance and being placed into concentration camps. Abbas created the campaign to spread awareness of ongoing genocide and encourage the world to speak up and condemn Chinese actions against the Uyghur people.

Campaign for Uyghurs started in 2017 in response to one million Uyghur people being imprisoned in concentration camps. According to their website, they aim to “create a world where every person feels the responsibility to counter genocide.”

They do this through three core programs: advocacy training for Uyghur women and youth, supporting key legislation and grassroots activism. The organization was nominated for a Nobel Prize in 2022.

The Hinckley Forum

The Hinckley forum consisted of a screening of the short documentary film, “The Grave is Wide,” directed by Adam Smith, a speech by Abbas and a moderated discussion with Professor Erika George of the S.J. Quinney College of Law.

Abbas began her speech by saying “the foundation of liberty is under attack,” as the Chinese regime seeks to destroy the Uyghur culture. She described the living conditions of the Uyghur people who are under constant surveillance in public and at home, using face recognition and emotion detection. She added Uyghur women are abused and forced into marriage, and the people are slaves for the production of Chinese products.

“Your clothes, car, and other products are made with the blood, sweat, and tears of the Uyghur slaves,” Abbas said. 

Abbas’ advocacy does not come without a price. She said after she gave a speech in 2018, her sister was taken prisoner in a concentration camp in East Turkistan. Abbas added she has 24 family members who have been imprisoned, and only weeks ago she found out her father-in-law had died in captivity in January. They had had no contact since his capture.

Abbas compared the severity of what is happening to the Uyghur people to the Holocaust.

“Humanity is being tested again and we are failing,” she said. “Will we have the courage to end on the right end of history?”

Abbas ended her speech advocating for international action by saying, “It’s about the future of the entire world, and the future of democracy.”

During the moderated discussion, George asked Abbas about the importance of using the word “genocide.” Abbas replied it is important to call it what it is — the erasure of peoples and their culture.

“The issue needs to be recognized as a crime,” Abbas said. 

George also asked about the potential long-term consequences of this crisis. Abbas said it affects the entire world.

“If the Chinese regime can get away with eradicating 20 million people, what will this teach other regimes?” she said.

Campaign for Uyghurs calls the world to action by supporting H.B. 4840, Uyghur Forced Labor Disclosure, a bill requiring publicly traded companies to review and disclose all information about any links their products may have to Uyghur forced labor.

Additionally, they encourage the public to sign petitions and to ask companies such as AirBnB, Coca-Cola and Procter & Gamble to end their partnership with the upcoming Beijing Olympics and boycott broadcasts of the games.

Abbas concluded the forum by referencing the Holocaust again.

“After the Holocaust we said, ‘never again,’” she said. “Will we follow this?”

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