The East Turkistan Maarif Movement has issued an urgent international appeal calling on the global community, particularly Turkic and Muslim nations, to confront systematic genocidal policies carried out by Chinese authorities in East Turkistan (Xinjiang).

In a statement released by the East Turkistan Maarif Movement, its representative Hidayet Oğuzhan has appealed to the international community, Turkic nations, and Muslim-majority countries to confront what the group describes as China’s “genocidal policies” in East Turkistan (also known as Xinjiang).

Oğuzhan said growing international attention on alleged atrocities in the region has prompted Chinese authorities to intensify propaganda and disinformation efforts. Beijing, he stated, denies any genocide is occurring and presents its policies as successful measures against “terrorism” and “extremism.”

According to the statement, China has expanded these efforts beyond state media by inviting journalists, civil society groups, political delegations, and religious figures from Turkic and Muslim countries to the region, while seeking favorable coverage in exchange for various incentives.

The group alleges that Chinese authorities have carried out large-scale population-control measures, including forced abortions and coercive sterilization of women. It further cites reports of arbitrary detention, lengthy prison sentences, mass arrests, executions without due process, and severe human rights abuses inside detention camps.

Oğuzhan claimed that numerous prominent individuals in science, religion, education, the arts, and business have died under suspicious circumstances or as a result of torture and ill-treatment in prisons and camps. The statement also points to the detention of millions of people, forced labor, the destruction of mosques and religious sites, damage to historical heritage, and what it describes as systematic attacks on the Uyghur people’s religion, language, culture, civilization, and national symbols.

“Although China denies its actions in East Turkistan, the consequences of its policies cannot be concealed,” the statement said. It characterizes the measures as a comprehensive and systematic campaign targeting the ethnic, demographic, religious, cultural, and civilizational identity of the region’s population, citing findings from international institutions and human rights organizations as evidence of the situation’s severity.

The East Turkistan Maarif Movement called on the Turkic and Muslim world, as well as the broader international community, not to remain silent and to stand with Uyghur Turks and all people of East Turkistan.

China has consistently rejected allegations of genocide or systematic human rights abuses in Xinjiang, describing its policies as necessary counter-terrorism and deradicalization efforts that have improved security and living standards in the region. (ILKHA)