UAA expresses concern over Shaoguan indictments



For immediate release
September 24, 2009, 12:00 pm EST
Contact: Uyghur American Association +1 (202) 349 1496




Uyghur The Uyghur American Association (UAA) believes that the indictment of only eleven Han Chinese suspects involved in an attack on Uyghur workers at a toy factory in Shaoguan, Guangdong indicates a favorable approach in civil unrest cases toward ethnic Han Chinese by Chinese criminal and judicial authorities.


A report released by Xinhua, the Chinese government’s official news agency, on September 23, 2009 stated that the eleven suspects had been indicted “for intentional injury and group affray”. UAA believes that the number of suspects indicted and the nature of the charges do not correspond to the severity of the incident at Shaoguan. UAA also believes that charges of murder or attempted murder should be brought against suspects known to have been involved in the beating of Uyghurs at Shaoguan.


In a statement, Uyghur democracy leader, Rebiya Kadeer said: “These indictments and the official rhetoric emanating from China on civil unrest illustrate a clear case of double standards by Chinese authorities. Peaceful Uyghur dissent is labeled separatism or terrorism, is punished severely, often with the death penalty, and is blamed on overseas hostile forces; however, when Han Chinese mobs attack and kill Uyghurs, the incidents are called ‘brawls’ and punished lightly. China must protect all of its citizens, Han Chinese and Uyghur. Only when this happens, will Uyghurs feel secure enough to engage in a dialogue with the Chinese government on Uyghur concerns.”


On June 29, 2009, UAA reported the mob killing of Uyghur workers and the injuring of many workers at a toy factory in Guangdong Province in the early morning hours of Friday, June 26, 2009. According to official Chinese media, an ethnic brawl at a factory in the city of Shaoguan left two Uyghur workers dead and 118 workers injured. According to some news reports, the majority of the injured were Uyghurs. However, unconfirmed reports indicated that more Uyghurs were killed than the two reported in the official media and that the “brawl” was in fact a massive mob attack.
In the UK Guardian newspaper, Jonathan Watts reported[1] an interview with a Han Chinese man involved in the Shaoguan killings, who stated that he personally “helped to kill seven or eight Uighurs, battering them until they stopped screaming.” The eyewitness added that the death toll could be around 30, a figure which tallies with reports received by UAA from workers at the toy factory in calls to the UAA office.


The inadequate response of Chinese criminal and judicial authorities to the Shaoguan killings prompted many Uyghurs to demonstrate peacefully in Urumchi, the regional capital of East Turkestan, on July 5, 2009. At the July 5, 2009 protest mostly young men and women, some of whom carried the flag of the People’s Republic of China, assembled and marched peacefully toward Urumchi’s People’s Square. The demonstrators asked for an investigation into the Shaoguan killings and expressed sympathy with the families of those killed and injured in Shaoguan. Protestors also asked to meet with government officials but none came out to meet with them.


On July 5, 2009, and on the days that followed, a number of innocent Uyghurs and Han Chinese were killed in violent unrest which engulfed Urumchi. However, since the unrest the Chinese government has conducted a crackdown on Uyghurs in which, according to a July 19, 2009 Financial Times report[2], more than 4,000 Uyghurs have been arrested. There is no information on the number of Han Chinese detained for their part in violence on July 6-7, 2009 against the Uyghur community in Urumchi.


UAA believes that the lenient Shaoguan indictments and the fierce crackdown on Uyghurs in East Turkestan in the wake of the Urumchi unrest demonstrate that Chinese laws are applied arbitrarily, and that the Chinese government systematically and institutionally discriminates against Uyghurs. UAA also believes the unequal application of Chinese law has contributed to the boldness of Han Chinese mobs to attack and kill Uyghurs not only in mainland China, but also in East Turkestan.
In a report[3] issued by Reuters, an eyewitness stated that during a protest in Urumchi on September 3, 2009 Han Chinese beat Uyghurs, as well as destroyed Uyghur-owned businesses. A Uyghur, who was suspected of carrying out one of a recent spate of alleged syringe stabbings, was beaten so severely that he was taken to the hospital.


UAA asserts that such unequal application of Chinese law pushes further away the prospect of genuine dialogue between Han Chinese and Uyghurs and that the rule of law is fundamental to the resolution of Uyghur concerns. UAA calls on the international community, particularly the United States, the European Community and the European Union, to question Chinese officials on the Chinese government’s record toward non-Han Chinese in the People’s Republic of China, and to seek from the Chinese government a guarantee that it will initiate dialogue with leaders of non-Han Chinese communities.

Source: http://www.uyghuramerican.org//articles/3743/1/UAA-expresses-concern-over-Shaoguan-indictments/index.html