Washington, D.C. [US], August 24 (ANI): The World Uyghur Congress (WUC) has released its latest weekly update, outlining key developments concerning the challenges faced by Uyghur Muslims and China’s continued repression.
A major update involves the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which has expanded enforcement of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA). The department has added steel, copper, lithium, caustic soda, and red dates to its list of high-priority imports subject to rigorous scrutiny. These goods, vital to industries such as energy, electronics, textiles, and food, will now face heightened inspections by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
Since August 1, CBP has intercepted more than 16,700 shipments worth a total of USD 7 billion, rejecting nearly 10,000 shipments valued at about USD 900 million due to ties with Uyghur forced labor.
The update also highlights China’s growing disinformation campaigns across the Middle East and North Africa. A report by the Centre for Uyghur Studies (CUS) revealed that Beijing has been spreading propaganda through Arabic-language state media, social media platforms, and cultural and religious diplomacy.
These efforts aim to distort the global understanding of the Uyghur genocide, silence criticism, and manipulate Muslim support. According to the report, China’s narratives are often amplified by Russian and Iranian media, further constraining independent journalism and embedding pro-Beijing views in the region. CUS Executive Director Abdulhakim Idris called the findings a “wake-up call” for governments and civil society, urging greater investment in independent journalism and fact-checking to counter Beijing’s influence.
Another development highlighted by the WUC is a piece published in The Diplomat by Omer Kanat, President of the Uyghur Human Rights Project (UHRP), exposing what he described as the “eliticide” of Uyghur intellectuals.
Kanat pointed to the continued imprisonment of prominent figures, including poet Dr. Abdulqadir Jalaleddin, detained since 2018, and ethnographer Dr. Rahile Dawut, missing since 2017. Both have been held without communication and sentenced to long prison terms without due legal process.
He argued that these cases exemplify Beijing’s systematic effort to erase Uyghur identity by targeting scholars, writers, and cultural leaders. Kanat urged universities, publishers, and governments worldwide to advocate for their release, cut ties with complicit Chinese institutions, and ensure the persecution of Uyghur intellectuals is neither ignored nor forgotten. (ANI)
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