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Up to recently,
the Chinese government has been using slogans as "there
are no inter-ethnic problems in China" and "the Chinese
nation is united as one" primarily to deceive the
international community and media. Chinese officials
have always been very careful in using the words East
Turkistan, East Turkistan independence, or an East
Turkistan organization. Perhaps, they thought that
talking about these issues could make the "East
Turkistan problem" international.
But recently, the Chinese administration has used a
completely opposite approach: several high-ranking
Chinese officials stated to the world the existence of
East Turkistan organization and the Uighur “separatism”
problem. Although, before the Chinese government was
scared of leaking any information on Uighur independence
movement to the international media, this time, it
declared with its own mouth about this problem to the
whole world. Obviously, this was not an easy sacrifice
for the Chinese government.
The Chinese government clearly revealed the fact that it
is impossible to hide further the East Turkistan problem.
Indeed, it was just a matter of time for the East
Turkistan problem to begin attracting the international
attention. In such circumstances, the Chinese
authorities are attempting to use the opportunity of the
US led worldwide campaign against international
terrorism in order to direct this campaign against
Uighurs as well by labelling them as Islamic terrorists.
The main goals of this action of the Chinese government
can be understood as follows. First, cut out any support
to the Uighur independence movement from the
international community. Second, continue suppression of
Uighurs and wipe out completely the Uighur independence
supporters from East Turkistan.
The Chinese government believes that if it repeats again
and again that Uighurs are terrorists because they are
Muslim and advocate separatism without providing any
evidence to support such claims, the world would believe
them. In particular, the Chinese officials claimed that
Uighurs have links with Osama bin Laden, but this is did
not come true.
Human rights organizations were the first in the western
world to understand how the Chinese communist government
treats Uighurs in East Turkistan. Listening to the
opinions of these human rights organizations, the
international community has resolutely refused to
consider the Uighur problem as that of the international
terrorism. For the first time in the last 137 years, the
Uighurs feel that they have not been forgotten by the
world, and that the international community is truly
concerned by their situation. |
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