Genocide and Uyghur Resilience: Uniqueness, Current Struggles, and Future Ahead

Summary of Key Developments

Since the invasion by the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in 1949, Beijing has systematically intensified total control of East Turkistan by utilizing settler colonialism.

The intensification of oppression, most notably the genocide and crimes against humanity perpetrated in East Turkistan since 2017, has strengthened demands for freedom and independence within the Uyghur diaspora. In contrast, groups that abandoned aspirations for independence and restricted their efforts to a human-rights framework have gradually experienced a decline in credibility among diaspora communities.

International attention towards China’s genocide and crimes against humanity greatly diminished after the October 7th Hamas attack in Israel and Israel’s subsequent genocide in Gaza, as well as during the war between Russia and Ukraine.

China’s genocide and crimes against humanity have continued, now supplemented by a softer strategy that permits a limited number of Uyghurs living abroad to visit relatives in East Turkistan, under strict state surveillance. This tactic is intended to create the illusion for the international community that there is no ongoing genocide, or that China has relaxed its policies.

The struggle of the Uyghur diaspora to secure freedom for the people in East Turkistan has neither diminished nor ceased. On the contrary, genocidal repression has intensified Uyghur opposition to Chinese colonial control, fostering a resilient anti-colonial consciousness grounded in shared trauma and dispossession. This movement possesses unique characteristics, and faces significant challenges and institutional weaknesses, yet demonstrates a strong sense of national aspiration.