|
UAA Testifies in U.S. Senate
Thursday, August 08, 2002
The Uyghur American Association (UAA) on Monday
testified before the Congressional-Executive
Commission
on China (CECC) on two troubling issues, which
concerned the Uyghur communities abroad. The open
forum
was held at Dirksen Senate Building at 2:30 p.m. in
Washington, DC
Sokrat Saydahmat, a board member of the UAA, expressed
the concern of the Uyghur communities around the world
on China’s recent decision to ban the Uyghur language
in the Xinjiang University and burning hundreds of
thousands of Uyghur books in Kashgar.
Mr. Saydahmat said, “The Uyghur people, language, and
culture are under attack and the Uyghur people must
watch helplessly and alone as the Chinese authorities
continue the devastation.”
In his statement Mr. Saydahmat urged the United States
to stop China’s ongoing cultural genocide of the
Uyghur
people.
At the end of his 5-minute presentation, Mr. Saydahmat
said, “Twelve million Uyghur people need a friend. We
also implore the United States government to create
and
fund a position of Special Coordinator for Human
Rights
in East Turkestan, much as been created to assist the
Tibetan people.”
Kathy Polias, co-director of the Uyghur Human Rights
Coalition, also testified before the Congressional-
Executive Commission on China on U.S. corporations
such
as Exxon-Mobile, companies conducting business in East
Turkestan. Ms. Polias urged the U.S. government to ask
corporations doing business in East Turkestan to train
Uyghurs and offer employment opportunities to them.
The open forum ended with Q & A session. And most of
the questions asked by CECC officials were about China
burning the Uyghur books and banning the Uyghur
language. China burned more than 32,000 Uyghur books,
including “The Brief History of Huns”, “Ancient Uyghur
Craftsmanship” and “Ancient Uyghur Literature”, in
Kashgar at the end of May. China has officially
announced banning the use of Uyghur language in
Xinjiang University starting from September 1, 2002.
The open forum was broadcast twice on C-SPAN 2, once
on
Monday and once Tuesday. It can be listened to online
at: http://www.c-span.org/international/
The Congressional-Executive Commission on China was
created by Congress in October, 2000, with the
legislative mandate to monitor human rights and the
development of the rule of law in China, and to submit
an annual report to the President and the Congress. It
consists of nine Senators, nine members of the House
of
Representatives, and five senior Administration
officials appointed by the President.
Copyright © 2000-2002 Uyghur Information Agency. All
Rights Reserved
|
