Thursday 28 March 2019

Terrorist Attacks Mosques in Christchurch

Terrorist Attacks Mosques in Christchurch:
It was carnage, horrible massacre

Dr. Mozammel Haque

It was carnage, horrible massacre in Christchurch’s two mosques on Friday, 15 March 2019 when an Australian-born white supremacist opened fire at two mosques, killing 49 worshippers and wounded more than 40 Muslims.  The attacks on Friday, 15 March 2019, the deadliest in New Zealand’s history, happened as people were attending the mosques for Jumah prayers.

The two mosques in the city of Christchurch, Al-Noor Mosque and Linwood Masjid, were attacked on Friday. At least 50 people killed and more than 40 others wounded, which the country’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern described as one of the nation’s “darkest days”. The wounded included a two-year-old boy and a four-year-old girl who are in critical condition.

New Zealand is an open, peaceful, diverse and inclusive country of 4.25 million out of which Muslims make up about 1.1%, according to the latest census figures. New Zealand Prime Minister Ardern said, “We are a nation of 200 ethnicities, 160 languages. We open our doors to others and say welcome.”



The gunman is Australian–born terrorist
The terrorist is not from New Zealand. A 28-year old Australian man identified as Brenton Harrison Tarrant has been charged with murder after the shootings at the Al-Noor and Linwood mosques. Brenton in his own words published in a rambling, racist and overtly white-supremacist online manifesto minutes before the attack. He said, he had decided “to commit to violence” against non-whites and immigrants, arguing they were destroying societal cohesion.

Entitled “The Great Replacement” the 75-page manifesto said the gunman – who identified himself as an Australian-born, white male - had wanted to attack Muslims. “The Great Replacement”, a phrase that originated in France and has become a rallying cry for European anti-immigration extremists. The man said he had begun planning an attack after visiting Europe in 2017 and being angered by events there. The title of the manifesto has the same name as a conspiracy theory originating in France that believes European populations are being displaced in their homelands by immigrant groups with higher birth rates.

The terrorist attacks took place in Christchurch, New Zealand. I therefore would like to look into the situation on the ground first and the role of the government of New Zealand particularly Prime minister Jacinda Ardern and then try to find out the reactions and responses of the UK government, UK Muslim leaders and the opinion of the intelligentsia. This terrorist attack was committed by a Far Right White Supremacist.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern
At Parliament
New Zealand Prime Minister earned praise the way she handled the most terrible test of her country. She delivered a speech on Christchurch terror attack on 19 March 2019. She addressed the parliament, “Al Salam Alaikum, Peace be upon you. And peace be upon all of us. On a quiet Friday afternoon a man stormed into a place of peaceful worship and took away the lives of 50 people. That quiet Friday afternoon has become our darkest of days. But for the families, it was more than that. It was the day that the simple act of prayer – of practising their Muslim faith and religion – led to the loss of their loved ones lives. Those loved ones, were brothers, daughters, fathers and children.”
“They were New Zealanders. They are us. And because they are us, we, as a nation, we mourn them. We feel a huge duty of care to them. And Mr Speaker, we have so much we feel the need to say and to do,” said Prime Minister Jacinda Ardent at Parliament.
New Zealand Prime Minister also praised those who showed extraordinary courage. She said, “Naeem Rashid, originally from Pakistan, died after rushing at the terrorist and trying to wrestle the gun from him. He lost his life trying to save those who were worshipping alongside him. Abdul Aziz, originally from Afghanistan, confronted and faced down the armed terrorist after grabbing the nearest thing to hand – a simple eftpos machine. He risked his life and no doubt saved many with his selfless bravery.”
Jacinda Ardent also mentioned some of the immediate measures and steps she has taken to ensure the safety of the Muslim community. She said, “A community welfare centre has been set up near the hospital in Christchurch to make sure people know how to access support. Visas for family members overseas are being prioritised so that they can attend funerals. Funeral costs are covered, and we have moved quickly to ensure that this includes repatriation costs for any family members who would like to move their loved ones away from New Zealand.”
“Mr Speaker, there is one person at the centre of this act of terror against our Muslim community in New Zealand. A 28-year-old man – an Australian citizen – has been charged with one count of murder. Other charges will follow. He will face the full force of the law in New Zealand. The families of the fallen will have justice. He sought many things from his act of terror, but one was notoriety. And that is why you will never hear me mention his name,” said New Zealand Prime Minister.
Jacinda Ardern also said, “He is a terrorist. He is a criminal. He is an extremist. But he will, when I speak, be nameless. And to others I implore you: speak the names of those who were lost, rather than name of the man who took them.”

She also mentioned, “There is no question that ideas and language of division and hate have existed for decades, but their form of distribution, the tools of organisation, they are new. We cannot simply sit back and accept that these platforms just exist and that what is said on them is not the responsibility of the place where they are published. This of course doesn’t take away the responsibility we too must show as a nation, to confront racism, violence and extremism. I don’t have all of the answers now, but we must collectively find them.  And we must act.”

She acknowledged and expressed her gratefulness “for all messages of sympathy, support and solidarity that we are receiving from our friends all around the world.  And we are grateful to the global Muslim community who have stood with us, and we stand with them.”
She also acknowledged every member of this House that has stood alongside their Muslim community but especially those in Canterbury as we acknowledge this double grief
Speaking about New Zealand, its people and policy, Prime Minister Ardent said, “we are a nation of 200 ethnicities, 160 languages. We open our doors to others and say welcome. And the only thing that must change after the events of Friday is that this same door must close on all of those who espouse hate and fear. Yes the person who committed these acts was not from here. He was not raised here. He did not find his ideology here, but that is not to say that those very same views do not live here.”
She said, “We wish for every member of our communities to also feel safe. Safety means being free from the fear of violence. But it also means being free from the fear of those sentiments of racism and hate, that create a place where violence can flourish. And every single one of us has the power to change that.”
“Let us acknowledge their grief as they do. Let’s support them as they gather again for worship,” said Prime Minister and added, “We are one, they are us.”
She concluded her speech at the Parliament saying, “Tatau tatau Al salam Alaikum Weh Rahmat Allah Weh Barakaatuh.”  

Well-planned “Terrorist attacks” –
says the Prime Minister
Ardern, the prime minister, said the assault on the mosques appeared to be a well-planned "terrorist attack". "This is, and will be, one of New Zealand's darkest days," Ardern told reporters.

New Zealand's prime minister described the suspects as having "extremist views". The accused shooter in the New Zealand mosque attacks sent Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern his 74-page diatribe against foreign "invaders" minutes before he launched the assault that killed at least 50 worshippers. Ardern said her office and others were emailed the alleged gunman's so-called manifesto nine minutes before the attacks began, but there wasn't enough time to take action to stop the massacre. "It did not include a location. It did not include specific details... If we could have [stopped it], we absolutely would have," she told reporters on Sunday.

In emotional scenes, Ardern earlier met mourning members of the Muslim community in Wellington. Friday's attack, which Ardern labelled as "terrorism", was the worst ever peacetime mass killing in New Zealand.


Prime Minister’s Support, Solidarity and
Sympathy to the Muslim community
The immediate measures, which the Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern took and showed the sympathy and support to the Muslim community of the country in times of need, become an example for leaders of the world how to treat a minority. Followings are the praiseworthy measures of Prime Minister Ardern: 

‪*50 Muslims got attacked & killed by an Australian born terrorist while praying at mosque
* How did New Zealand, a tiny island of only 4 million people respond?
‪- entire population mourned genuinely
‪- called it a terrorist attack when the attacker was white
‪- Raised $9million + for the families affected 
- All funeral costs to be undertaken by the Government of New Zealand 
- Any person caught spreading hate news, or the attack video to be jailed up to 14 years. 
- banned Guns within hours of the incident
- Huge number of people gathered all over the country to lay flowers outside mosques and show their support within hours.
-  Kiwi people including the New Zealand police & even gang members of the country are patrolling outside mosques while Muslims pray
- The Azaan played publicly on National TV , Radio and every Mosque around New Zealand at  Friday prayers on 22 March 2019 
- Government fast tracked visas to 24 hours to allow families of affected to enter New Zealand
- Kiwi people opened their homes to provide free shelter, food and support to any Muslim
- Non Muslim Kiwi girls wore the Hijab to make Hijabi girls feel safer
- The New Zealand media made sure they covered the Muslim voice in depth and detail, with full interviews with the families of those affected, front page headlines for days and still continuing
- The Prime Minister Jacinda wore a Hijab and personally visited the Muslim community on a daily basis to provide love, support & updates all while wearing a hijab. She hugged Muslims and genuinely cried with them 
- The New Zealand Parliament invited an imam to start a Parliament session with an Islamic prayer (First time in History)
- Flags flew at half mast
- The Kiwi people filled up parks and beaches with art work, flowers, and candles to show they stand with the Muslim community shoulder to shoulder 
- Non Muslim Kiwis are actively staying around Muslims to make sure they feel welcome and at home. They are sitting, talking & eating with them. 

New Zealand, you have made a special place in the hearts of 1.8 billion people.
I wrote the following letter to the Prime Minister of New Zealand: “Congratulations to New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern for uniting the nation. There are very very few leadership in the world like Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. She deserves all praise for whatever she did. I have all praise for her. She also deserves praise from all people who are victims of injustice and terrorism. I Dr Mozammel Haque wholeheartedly appreciate her leadership. I pray to God to grant her long life to serve the nation which she united under the terrible test of her leadership. Good luck to her. God bless her.”


The Prime Minister of New Zealand Jacinda Ardern deserves Nobel Prize for her support, solidarity and sympathy and humanitarian service for her citizens, especially the Muslim community. There is a petition going on for awarding her Nobel Peace Prize.

Response of the UK Government
The Queen paid tribute to the emergency services and volunteers who helped the injured, and said: "Prince Philip and I send our condolences to the families and friends of those who have lost their lives. She added that her "thoughts and prayers are with all New Zealanders" at this "tragic time".

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, in a joint message with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, called the attack "senseless", saying: "No person should ever have to fear attending a sacred place of worship." They ended the message with the Maori words Kia Kaha, meaning "stay strong".

British Prime Minister Mrs Theresa May also condemned the "horrifying terrorist attack", saying: "My thoughts are with all of those affected by this sickening act of violence." She said the UK stood "shoulder to shoulder" with New Zealand. "There can be no place in our societies for the vile ideology that drives and incites hatred and fear," the prime minister added.

British Home Secretary Sajid Javid said to a newspaper: “This is proof that terror has no religion. Whether far right or Islamist, terrorist atrocities are about hate, nothing else. I have made it my mission to address this despicable hatred against all faiths and communities, at every level.”

“The terrorists will not triumph. This cowardly attack can only harden our resolve. Together we are stronger. We must stand side by side against hate. Side by side with all British Muslims.”

Mr. Sajid Javid was joined by Communities Secretary James Brokenshire, London Mayor Sadiq Khan, the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and Chief Rabbi at the Central London Mosque on Monday. Mr. Javid said Monday’s gathering was a demonstration of a shared pain and “to show that no faith, no race, no community, will ever be alone.”

He added: “The events that unite us are beyond tragic, but together we represent what is truly great about Britain. An open and welcoming country, that finds strength in its diversity.”

The London Mayor Sadiq Khan did not mention name politicians or the media directly, but strongly hinted at their role in influencing people and having a role in them becoming radicalised, reported BBC. “There is a responsibility on all of us to be very careful in the language we use,” Mr. Khan urged.

At the Central London Mosque on Monday, London Mayor Sadiq Khan added that diversity in London was a strength, not a weakness. “We don’t simply tolerate it – we embrace and respect it.”

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said there was “anger” and “frustration” among young Muslims, adding they had raised concerns about language used by politicians “that could’ve led to some of the behaviour and actions we’ve seen not just in Christchurch but in this country”.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said there was “anger” and “frustration” among young Muslims, adding they had raised concerns about language used by politicians “that could’ve led to some of the behaviour and actions we’ve seen not just in Christchurch but in this country”.
Here at London Central Mosque, leaders of all faiths and backgrounds stand together against hate. Let us show that hope, unity and love always trump fear, division and hatred. And let our friends in #Christchurch feel the ripples of solidarity and compassion from our city.

Flags have been lowered to half mast at Downing Street and the Foreign Office, as well as in the British town of Christchurch in Dorset, which is twinned with its New Zealand namesake.
·         Muslim Funeral prayer was held at Trafalgar Square London on Saturday 16th March
·         Sunday 17th March Prayer held at Hyde Park Speakers Corners London
·         This is an absolutely wonderful by New Zealand Nations. They are all putting this as their profile pictures everywhere standing in solidarity on 15th March 2019
·         New Zealand Prime Minister wore Hijab while honouring the Muslim community.
Prime Minister Ardern said it is a terrorist attack and there is a rise of far right throughout the world.
Political leaders worldwide
Condemned the killings
Political leaders across the world condemned the killings, racism and Islamophobia. Antonio-Guterres, the UN secretary General condemned the shooting “of innocent people as they prayed peacefully in mosques in New Zealand”, adding: “We must stand united against anti-Muslim hatred, and all forms of bigotry and terror.”

Australia’s Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, ordered flags to be flown half mast. He said: “I condemn the violent extremist right-wing terrorist attack that has stolen the lives of so any innocent New Zealanders as they went about their peaceful practice of worship at their mosques in Christchurch today.”

The French President Emmanuel Macron, said: “All our thoughts are with the victims of the heinous crimes against the mosques of Christchurch, New Zealand, and with their loved ones. France stands against all forms of extremism.”

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan described them as "the latest example of rising racism and Islamophobia". Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan also blamed the attacks on rising Islamophobia."I blame these increasing terror attacks on the current Islamophobia post-9/11 where Islam and 1.3 billion Muslims have collectively been blamed for any act of terror by a Muslim," said Khan. “This has been done deliberately to also demonise legitimate Muslim political struggles."

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned the deadly attack on the mosques, describing them as "the latest example of rising racism and Islamophobia." "With this attack, hostility towards Islam, that the world has been idly watching and even encouraging for some time, has gone beyond individual harassment to reach the level of mass killing," Erdogan said at the funeral of a former Turkish minister.  

“This attack shows the point which hostility to Islam and enmity to Muslims has reached," Ibrahim Kalin wrote on Twitter. "We have seen many times Islamophobic discourse against Islam and Muslims turning into a perverse and murderous ideology. The world must raise its voice against such discourse and must say stop to Islamophobic fascist terrorism," he said.


UK Muslim leaders 
Baroness Sayeeda Warsi said, “My concern with the party and the government is Islamophobia – it’s our bigotry blind spot,” she told the Guardian. Warsi said a change the government should make – to show it has learned from the attacks in New Zealand – is to adopt a formal definition of Islamophobia. A definition put forward by the all-party parliamentary group on British Muslims had been adopted by the Lib Dems, was being considered by the Labour party and was backed by councils, academics, 850 Muslim organisations and about 70 parliamentarians, she said.

“Whether it’s in relation to the protection of mosques, whether it’s in relation to engagement with British Muslim communities, whether it’s in relation to acknowledging the level of hate either within the party or within government policymaking, whether it’s the way we use the language of British Muslim communities, it is our bigotry blind spot.

“It comes back down to the fact that we fail to see it and recognise it as a specific form of racism that it is, directed at British Muslim communities, and we therefore fail to make adequate policy and respond.”

Harun Khan, the secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain, will be writing to Mrs May raising the “palpable sense of fear” felt by Muslim communities after the attack in Christchurch, and warning of the risk of copycat attacks in the UK.

The former integration tsar, Dame Louise Casey, warned a New Zealand-style atrocity could occur in the UK. Casey said Britain needed to “wake up” as extremism had not been tackled sufficiently.

There was a message of solidarity as faith and community leaders, joined by London Mayor Sadiq Khan, held a gathering at the East London Mosque dedicated to victims of the New Zealand mosque shootings. Imam Mohammed Mahmoud calls for a crackdown on far-right extremism. People in power were partly responsible for "perpetuating the narrative of otherness of a group who are perceived as infiltrators, and the dehumanisation and the vilification of Muslims who, by and large, are peaceful, law-abiding, loving citizens". The Bishop of London, Sarah Mullally, said an "attack on faith anywhere" was an "attack on faith everywhere".
Sheila McGregor, of the Tower Hamlets Stand Up To Racism group, said the "demonisation" of Muslims was a "global phenomenon" and had been carried out by politicians for "decades". "This kind of act happens when people feel it is legitimate and it's legitimised from the top," she said.
The role of language in fomenting anti-Islam sentiment was touched on by several of the speakers, including the London mayor. Mr Khan did not reference the media or any politicians directly, but strongly hinted at their role in influencing people and at their role in people becoming radicalised. "There is a responsibility on all of us to be very careful in the language we use, and the messages we amplify," the mayor said.

We grieve together. We are one.
They are us - Ardern
The prime minister addressed a special meeting on Tuesday, opening her speech by using Islamic greeting "Al-Salaam Alaikum", which in English means "peace be upon you". She said: "I implore you, speak the names of those who were lost rather than the name of the man who took them. He is a terrorist. He is a criminal. He is an extremist. But he will, when I speak, be nameless."

Ardern was the first signatory of a national condolence book for the country's worst mass killing that she opened in the capital Wellington on Monday. "On behalf of all New Zealanders, we grieve together. We are one. They are us," she wrote in the book.

Far-right terrorism
The Observer editorial

The Observer editorial under the caption “The Christchurch shootings: we’ve been too slow to see the far right threat” wrote on 17 March 2019: “even after so much previous bloodshed in the name of hate-filled ideologies, the murder of 49 men, women and children at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, on Friday has spread shock and disgust around the globe.”


It said, “But there were other factors behind our collective outrage: recognition of the spread, power and brutality of the global far right; the evidence that it feeds off a widening Islamophobia that reaches deep into our political culture; and the demonstration of how terrorism has been made immeasurably more effective by modern technology, in this case the manner in which the attacker deployed Facebook to display his gruesome work.”


“Expressions of solidarity and support have flooded in from all over the world. These are made in the hope that they will provide some comfort to Muslims who will be feeling even less safe after Friday’s attacks and are to be welcomed. But thoughts and prayers are not, and have never been, enough. In the weeks and months after such an atrocity – when the initial shock and grief has passed, but the extra police presence remains – we have a duty to the Muslim, Jewish and other minorities that feel under threat from far-right extremism. It is to ask a simple question: are we doing all in our power to prevent such an attack happening again?” the editorial continued.

“The regrettable truth is that expressing deep sympathy in the immediate aftermath of an attack comes much more easily than longer-term reflection on the role that politicians and social and traditional media may play in creating an environment in which far-right terrorism can flourish,” it said and mentioned, “There can be no doubt that the west has underestimated the risk of far-right terrorism. The murder of the MP Jo Cox in 2016 left Britain numb with shock. Yet what lessons were really learned in the wake of her assassination? Since then, the far-right threat has only grown.”

“There has been a tendency for our political leaders to underplay far-right violence by claiming that it is the product of isolated individuals, while seeing Muslim terrorists as linked to groups working systematically to destroy western liberal societies” the editorial said and added, “One reason for this double standard may be that it is easier to attribute organised evil to fundamentalist movements whose origins lie in societies that appear to have little in common with the west than to accept that the same evil can grow in the hearts of those who live alongside us.”

The Editorial observed, “Eight years ago, Sayeeda Warsi argued that Islamophobia had passed the “dinner-table test” in Britain. Since then, Islamophobia and antisemitism have come to pollute mainstream politics. The link between hate speech and violent extremism may be complex and indirect, but it would be naive to dismiss it altogether. So the world faces an important test in its response to Christchurch. Will it be to express solidarity and move on? Or will our leaders make more effort to call out all forms of racist hate wherever they are found? That would be a fitting tribute to the 49 people who lost their lives on Friday.”

 

What did Ardern say?

Asked about the rise of right-wing nationalism she said: "This was an Australian citizen but that is not to say that we do not have an ideology in New Zealand that would be an affront to the majority of New Zealanders."

She defended New Zealand's record on accepting refugees, saying: "We are a welcoming country. I utterly reject the idea that in any way in trying to ensure that we have a system that looks after those who choose to call New Zealand home that we have perpetuated an environment where this kind of ideology can exist."

'We need global action on extremism' –
New Zealand Prime Minister
The New Zealand Prime Minister Ardern has called for global action on extremism in an exclusive BBC interview on 20 March 2019. Speaking to the BBC's Clive Myrie she said she "utterly rejects" the idea that New Zealand had perpetuated an environment that allows an extremist ideology to exist by allowing migrants into the country. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern wants to see a global fight against racism after the Christchurch mosque attacks.

She said there was a responsibility "to weed it out where it exists and make sure that we never create an environment where it can flourish".

But I would make that a global call," she added. "What New Zealand experienced here was violence brought against us by someone who grew up and learned their ideology somewhere else.

“If we want to make sure globally that we are a safe and tolerant and inclusive world we cannot think about this in terms of boundaries," New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said. 

Thursday 14 March 2019

Uyghurs Need Your Support - says Aziz Isa Elkun

China’s Ethnic Cleansing of Uyghurs –
From Oppression To Genocide

Dr. Mozammel Haque

“Uyghurs are helpless and on the edge of disappearing from this world. Humanity is crying out every minute in the hearts of Uyghurs. The world must save the Uyghurs before it is too late. Money cannot buy love of humanity! Uyghurs need your support!” said Aziz Isa Elkun, Secretary of Uyghur PEN Centre while presenting a paper at the Conference on China’s Brute Crackdown on Uyghur Muslims, organised by the Cordoba Foundation, London, on 15 February 2019 at the London Muslim Centre, London.

Aziz Isa Elkun
While presenting his paper at the conference, Dr. Aziz Isa Elkun, Secretary of Uyghur PEN Centre gave a historical background of the Uyghur s struggle for independence and the recent persecution of Uyghurs by the China’s authorities. “Today’s “Uyghur problem” in China is not a new one but an old unsolved one. The current situation is one of the worst crimes that a country has openly committed against a specific ethnicity since the Second World War,” said Aziz Isa Elkun.

Who are Uyghurs and where they live?
First of all, Mr. Aziz Isa traces the background of Uyghurs and who are they and where they live. He said, “The Uyghurs are an indigenous Turkic people who live in East Turkistan and Central Asia. Uyghurs are the earliest city dwellers among the Turkic peoples, and they developed its rich cultural heritage. Today, over 20 million Uyghurs live in East Turkistan along with other small number of Turkic people, like Kazakh, Kyrgyz and Uzbeks. The region is today officially known as the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China, its vast geographical territory includes 1 million 800 km land, and it borders with 13 countries. Its strategic location lies at the heart of ancient Silk Road which has connected the East with West during the last millennium before the sea routes emerged.”

China’s Occupation of Eastern Turkistan
Mr. Aziz Isa Elkun went back to the past – the history of the Chinese occupation of Eastern Turkestan. He has given a detailed picture of how China occupied this region. He said, “Since China occupied East Turkistan with the direct support of Soviet Union in 1949, the Uyghurs have experienced from various forms of oppression under the regime in the past 70 years, up to the current cultural and ethnic genocide.”

“The 1997 Ghulja Massacre was one of the most serious of China's atrocities. 22 years ago on 5th February in the City of Ghulja, East Turkistan, thousands of Uyghur youth protested against the Chinese government's arbitrary arrest of Uyghurs who participated in Meshrep - Uyghur Cultural activities. On that day, the Chinese army opened fire on peaceful demonstrators. Every year we remember those who were killed or imprisoned after participating in the peaceful demonstration in Ghulja," he mentioned.

Mr. Aziz Isa also mentioned, “Over the 70 years of colonization in East Turkistan and Uyghurs, China, the regime has periodically used all measures of forced assimilation, making the inhabitants more Han Chinese, so if these non-Chinese were assimilated into Han Chinese, then China could permanently occupy these lands without fear of conflict with other races. So China applied inhumane policies with full state power.”
 
Mr. Aziz Isa has given a long history, in brief, how China's occupation and oppression of Uyghurs in their homeland in East Turkistan took place. He mentioned the long history, in brief, as follows:
·         
“* The last surviving Uyghur independent state of Saidiye Uyghur Kingdom (Yarkand Khanate) collapsed in 17th Century after an Islamic factional war within the Kingdom.

·         * “At the high peak of “Great Game” of Central Asia between British, Russia and Chinese, East Turkistan was become a political and geographical competing point between three empires. It’s buffer state status was rejected by Petersburg in 1870s.

·         * “With the support of Russian and British empires, there was 10 years war between East Turkistan (Kashgaria) and Manchu China. In 1884, East Turkistan was fully occupied by Manchu Qing (China) and renamed as “Xinjiang - means “New Dominion” in Chinese language.

·         * “The Manchu Qing Empire was overthrown by the Chinese Nationalist revolution in 1911. In 1949, the Peoples Republic of China (Communist China – present regime) was established and inherited its rule over the colonized countries of East Turkistan, Tibet, Southern Mongolia.”

From “East Turkistan” to “Xinjiang”
Mr. Aziz Isa described the numerous incidents of resistance and rebellion against the Chinese occupation that took place and never stopped in the last 100 years. He mentioned, as follows:
·        
“* "Uyghur established short lived Islamic Republic of East Turkistan in Kashgar 1933.
·         
* “Established Republic of East Turkistan (Second republic) with support of Russia in Ghulja 1945 but 5 years later, Stalin decided to support Mao Zedong, then the Uyghur aspirations of having independent state become a dream again. Uyghurs once more sold out by foreign powers to China. In August 1949, all the Uyghur leaders were killed in a staged plane crash (secretly killed in Moscow by KGB) when they were travelling to Beijing for negotiation the future status of East Turkistan with Mao Zedong. Then Soviet Union directly sent their tanks and war planes to assist the occupation of East Turkistan by Chinese Red Army.

·         * “East Turkistan (Uyghuristan) once again becomes a colony of China in 1949 and in 1955, China announced the establishment of “Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region” but this Uyghur autonomous status was never implemented and only written on the paper.”

Uyghurs aspiration for independence
and the crackdown
The aspirations of Uyghurs for independence continued after the disintegration of Soviet Union and emergence of independent Muslim Central Asian Republics. Mr. Aziz Isa then mentioned the Uyghurs aspirations for independence at the last decade of the 20th century. He said, “After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1990, the Uyghurs witnessed their ethnic kin people like Uzbek, Kazakh and Kyrgyz people achieve independence. Therefore aspirations for independence grew and systematic resistance against the Chinese rule developed among the Uyghurs.”

Followings are some of the incidents took place during the last decade of the 20th century and how the Chinese authority’s crackdown on the Uyghurs mentioned Mr. Aziz Isa as follows:

·         * There were numerous of protests and peaceful demonstrations in many cities in East Turkistan, including “Ghulja Massacre” in 1997, but all ended with merciless crackdown by the Chinese army.

·         * “Chinese “strike hard” campaign continued against the whole Uyghur people, but Uyghurs never stopped demanding their legitimate cultural, religious and civil rights within China.

·         * “China actively was seeking legitimate reasons to oppress Uyghurs rights demand. After “September 11” terror incident on US, China begun hijacking western world’s “war on terror” and used “Islamophobia” as an opportunity to oppress Uyghurs.” 

Xinjiang under Chen Quanguo
“Concentration Camps”
Chen Quangua was appointed to Xinjiang in 2016. He build one police station in every 100 meters and then started building large scale “Concentration Camps” officially named “Re-education “ camps. Mr. Aziz Isa has given a picture of the actions taken by Chen Quangua when he was given the absolute power to rule Xinjiang. He mentioned, as follows:

·         * “The political situation of the Uyghurs became even worse when Xi Jinping began to rule China. After former Communist Party Secretary of Tibet, Chen Quanguo, was appointed to Xinjiang in 2016, he was given ultimate power to suppress the Uyghurs’ resistance and force assimilation by whatever methods they could find.

·         * “Chen Quanguo began to build one police station in every 100 meters just as he did in Lhasa, Tibet before 2016.

·         * “In order to achieve ultimate quick results of forced assimilating the Uyghurs, Chen Quanguo borrowed Nazis Hitler’s method, and beginning in 2017, he started building large scale “Concentration Camps” officially named “Re-education” camps. Now it is estimated that between one to three million innocent Uyghurs, including writers, academics, teachers and farmers, are kept in these camps.

·         * “From Google map, you can see more than 300 largest “Concentration Camps”.  ABC News agency reported on 31 Oct 2018:  “Despite the massive scale of the camps examined in this project, it’s likely they make up just a fraction of the detention network in Xinjiang. Estimates of camp numbers range anywhere between 181 to upwards of 1,200.”  Source: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-11-01/satellite-images-expose-chinas-network-of-re-education-camps/10432924

·         * “Adrian Zenz has studied the Chinese “Re-education” camp building projects through analyzing satellite images, and his research reveals that the scale of building camps is large and permanent.  Source: https://jamestown.org/program/evidence-for-chinas-political-re-education-campaign-in-xinjiang/

·         * “Xi Jinping’s fascistic policy in East Turkistan started in 2016 in the guise of an “anti-terror campaign” which aimed to eradicate Uyghur ethnic, cultural and religious identity and existence, banning Uyghur language schools and closing down mosques.”

Mr. Aziz Isa also mentioned about the latest situation of Uyghur in 2018. He said, “The continuing political oppression and gross human rights abuse of the Uyghurs in East Turkistan / Xinjiang is unprecedented. It reached its peak after New Year in 2018. Now many Western media reports on a daily basis that over a million Uyghurs were being sent to Chinese ‘Concentration Camps’. Shamelessly, even at UN sessions, Chinese government officials denied their crimes against the humanity.”

No to China’s ethnic Cleansing of Uyghurs
Mr. Aziz Isa appealed to the international community to call upon China and say – “No to China’s Ethnic Cleansing of Uyghurs. He mentioned how the Uyghur Muslims has lost their rights to live. He said, “Now the Chinese government has taken away Uyghur’s rights to live. Now Chinese government has begun to walk in the direction of fascism in East Turkistan (Xinjiang). They have established hundreds of prisons, some of the largest in the world, that contain up to ten thousand people. In these prisons they have arbitrarily detained over a million Uyghurs, Kazakhs and other Turkic people. They call these prisons “Vocational training” but we call them the “Concentration Camps” of the 21st Century. They are secretly committing cultural genocide and the ethnic cleansing of Uyghurs. They have banned all foreign reporters from visiting the region. We ask the world to say No to China’s ethnic cleansing of the Uyghurs before it’s too late.”

Uyghurs Need Your Support
Mr. Aziz Isa Elkun lamented, “Unfortunately, there is a lack of action by international governments to stop the Chinese government’s crimes, and its xenophobic attitude towards the Uyghurs. Uyghurs are peace loving people, they have made an enormous contribution to the civilization of the world but now Uyghurs are helpless and on the edge of disappearing from this world. Humanity is crying out every minute in the hearts of Uyghurs. The world must save the Uyghurs before it is too late. Money cannot buy love of humanity! Uyghurs need your support!”