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The World Uyghur Congress (WUC) intensified its international advocacy efforts in September, raising concerns over alleged human rights violations against Uyghurs in China, transnational repression and the rights of Uyghur children, according to its September 2026 newsletter.
According to the newsletter, Vice President Zumretay Arkin addressed the 63rd session of the United Nations Human Rights Council on September 9, urging member states to take concrete action following the UN human rights offices 2022 assessment of the situation in Xinjiang, referred to as East Turkistan by Uyghur groups. The newsletter said WUC and UZDM representatives also held advocacy meetings at the European Parliament in Strasbourg in mid-September. Discussions focused on Chinas newly enacted Ethnic Unity and Progress Law, individual Uyghur cases and allegations of an ongoing Uyghur genocide. Representatives also presented a report marking ten years since the beginning of the mass internment campaign. According to the WUC newsletter, the organisations Womens Committee held its second International Womens Meeting in Istanbul on September 12 and 13, bringing together more than 50 women, activists and young participants from the diaspora. The discussions addressed the preservation of Uyghur language and identity, womens participation, mental health, security and challenges faced by Uyghurs living in exile. The WUC further reported that it joined 28 human rights organisations in an open letter to Chinese President Xi Jinping ahead of his planned visit to Washington, calling for the release of prisoners of conscience and an end to transnational repression. At the end of September, WUC and UZDM representatives participated in the UN Human Rights Council session in Geneva and raised concerns about Uyghur refugees and international accountability. On September 30, they also participated in a pre-sessional working group of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child ahead of Chinas upcoming review. The WUC newsletter said the representatives highlighted concerns over family separation, state-run boarding schools, discrimination and the cultural, religious and educational rights of Uyghur children. Separately, the newsletter highlighted a press conference organised by the Japan Uyghur Association in Tokyo on August 31. It presented the testimony of a Uyghur man who was allegedly sent to work at a factory thousands of kilometres from home through Chinas labour transfer programme before being sold to an international fraud ring. The WUC newsletter also drew attention to reports concerning AI-assisted surveillance targeting Uyghur advocacy groups, restrictions on freedom of movement and a global call by more than 130 UN human rights experts to combat transnational repression. The organisation urged supporters to engage with its advocacy initiatives, contribute to legal proceedings concerning Uyghurs in Argentina and help raise awareness of Uyghur rights. (ANI)
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