ANKARA: A large protest was organised by the Uyghurs diaspora outside Beijing’s embassy in Ankara against Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s visit to the country.
During the protest that took place on Thursday here, Turkish opposition figures joined the families of Uyghurs who are facing atrocities at the hand of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
The Turkic Muslim minority said in a news conference that they have not been able to contact their relatives in China’s autonomous region of Xinjiang, Anadolu Agency reported.
Among the protesters were Democrat Party’s leader Gultekin Uysal, Future Party’s deputy chairman Selcuk Ozdag, Good (IYI) Party’s deputy Fahrettin Yokus and Saadet (Felicity) Party’s deputy Abdulkadir Karaduman.
Seyit Tumturk, head of the East Turkistan National Assembly, was unable to physically attend the protest due to a possible COVID-19 infection but made his statement virtually.
Uysal said: “We must call on Chinese Foreign Minister [Wang Yi], who is currently in Ankara, and Chinese representatives. Just like the Cyprus matter, Azerbaijani struggle, there must be an endeavor for [rights of] East Turkistan.” Xinjiang is also referred to as East Turkistan.
He further called on China to respond to claims of rights violations against Uyghurs. Future Party’s Ozdag said: “China is a great country… It is economic power. If it is such great country, then it must abide by its Constitution.” Amid growing global concerns over human rights abuses in China, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu conveyed “sensitivity” regarding the treatment meted out to Uyghur Turks.
Cavusoglu’s statement came during a meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Ankara on Thursday. “Discussed potential of economic cooperation with FM Wang Yi of China on 50th anniversary of our diplomatic relations. Will enhance our cooperation in the fight against pandemic and vaccine. Conveyed our sensitivity and thoughts on Uyghurs Turks,” the Turkish Foreign Minister had tweeted.
Turkish officials have repeatedly accused China of incarcerating and torturing Uyghurs, a Muslim minority populating the far-western Xinjiang region, Sputnik reported. China has been rebuked globally for cracking down on Uyghur Muslims. They have been accused of sending them to mass detention camps, interfering in their religious activities and sending members of the community to undergo some form of forcible re-education or indoctrination.
Beijing, on the other hand, has vehemently denied that human rights abuses in Xinjiang while reports from journalists, NGOs and former detainees have surfaced, highlighting the Chinese Communist Party’s brutal crackdown on the ethnic community.
On Monday, the United States, the UK and Canada had slammed China for human rights violations and abuses against Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang.”We, the Foreign Ministers of Canada and the United Kingdom, and the United States Secretary of State, are united in our deep and ongoing concern regarding China’s human rights violations and abuses in Xinjiang,” stated a joint statement released by the US State Department.
The ministers took coordinated action on measures, in parallel to measures by the European Union, in a bid to send a clear message about the human rights violations and abuses in Xinjiang. (ANI)
