The French president Emmanuel Macron’s decision to welcome Chinese President Xi Jinping to France has sparked anger among the Uyghur community in France. The Uyghur people consider Xi Jinping to be responsible for the genocide and persecution of the Uyghur population in Xinjiang, China. Many Western countries, including France, have denounced the ongoing genocide against the Uyghurs. The French National Assembly passed a resolution in January 2022 condemning the genocide and calling on the government to do the same.
Since 2017, more than a million Uyghurs and members of other Muslim ethnic groups have been interned in “re-education camps” in China. These camps have been widely criticized for numerous human rights violations. The Chinese government claims that these facilities are vocational training centers aimed at providing skills to the residents and steering them away from extremism. However, many Uyghurs who have been released from these camps have shared stories of surveillance, discrimination, and cultural suppression.
Uyghur activists in France, such as sociologist Dilnur Reyhan and Gulbahar Haitiwaji, who spent three years in a camp, are calling for the closure of these facilities and the release of millions of Uyghurs who are still detained. They are disappointed by Macron’s decision to welcome Xi Jinping despite the human rights abuses being committed against the Uyghur people. They accuse Macron of prioritizing economic and political interests over human rights and the plight of the Uyghurs.
The Uyghur Institute of Europe plans to hold a demonstration in Paris to protest Xi Jinping’s visit, with members of the Uyghur community in France participating in a theatrical performance. The institute seeks to raise awareness about the persecution of the Uyghurs and to call for international action to address the human rights violations in Xinjiang. The Uyghur community in France sees Macron’s decision to welcome Xi Jinping as a betrayal of their struggle for justice and as a sign of ongoing complicity in China’s atrocities.
The Uyghur activists in France are urging President Macron to raise the issue of the detention camps and human rights abuses with China during Xi Jinping’s visit. They are calling for a firm stance on the closure of the camps and the release of all Uyghurs who are being held against their will. The Uyghur community in France is hopeful that their voices will be heard and that international pressure will lead to a change in China’s policies towards the Uyghur population in Xinjiang. The visit of Xi Jinping to France has brought renewed attention to the plight of the Uyghurs and the need for global solidarity in addressing human rights violations.
