Omer Kanat, Executive Director of the Uyghur Human Rights Project (UHRP), said that Uyghur Genocide Recognition Day serves as a reminder that "Uyghurs continue to face cultural erasure," and emphasized that recognition must be "backed by concrete, enforceable policies." Kanat made this statement in a press release dated December 9.
"Uyghur Genocide Recognition Day is a reminder of what is at stake—Uyghurs continue to face cultural erasure," said Kanat, Executive Director of Uyghur Human Rights Project. "Words of recognition must be backed by concrete, enforceable policies to end complicity in these atrocities."
According to the UHRP press release, December 9, 2024, marks the fourth annual Uyghur Genocide Recognition Day. The organization has urged businesses, governments, and civil society to "strengthen accountability measures and deliver justice for the Uyghur people." Global awareness of the situation has increased recently, with the United Nations raising concerns in an assessment by the Office of High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) suggesting China may be committing human rights violations.
A UK-based tribunal found that China has committed genocide against the Uyghur people in Xinjiang. The BBC reported that the Uyghur Tribunal cited birth control and sterilization measures as primary reasons for their conclusion. The tribunal consisted of lawyers and academics who heard from over 70 witnesses during hearings held in London in June and September 2021.
Human Rights Watch reported that the Chinese government is conducting a "widespread and systematic attack against Uyghurs and Turkic Muslims in Xinjiang," involving detention, disappearances, censorship and surveillance, religious persecution, and forced labor. Uyghurs are reportedly placed in labor camps referred to as "political re-education camps" by the Chinese Communist Party. Approximately 500,000 Turkic Muslims have been detained in these camps since 2017.
Kanat is a prominent advocate for Uyghur human rights. He serves as Executive Director of UHRP and is also the executive committee chairman of the World Uyghur Congress (WUC). He co-founded UHRP in 2003 and WUC in 2004.
