Activist Aydin Anwar on Chinese Internment of Muslims

China is putting Muslims into internment camps and Activist Aydin Anwar says no one’s doing anything about it.

“Right now, China’s detained over a million Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims in concentration camps,” she explained. “They are forced to denounce Islam, adopt atheism, and pledge allegiance to the Chinese state.”

Anwar says one of her relatives was put in one of the camps in early 2017, and came out dead. She also says there’s not a single Uyghur who doesn’t have at least one family member in these camps or some form of detention or prison. And when someone dies in the camps, they are cremated rather than sent back to their families, so there’s no clear idea of how many people are dying.

Most towns and villages in East Turkestan are almost empty and approximately 80% of the civilians are gone. Schools and factories are apparently being transformed into these concentration camps.

“East Turkestan is really rich in minerals and resources, so by putting people into camps and basically carrying out an ethnic cleansing, China is attempting to maintain tight control over the mineral-rich land,” Anwar said.

Anwar says the reason that the world has been so silent about this issue is because China has a tight hold on its media. And when people do know about it, they are forced to remain silent due to Chinese pressure and their economic and strategic ties to the country. She also says raising awareness about the issue and putting pressure on government officials can help the problem.

More Videos