Uyghurs in Australia condemn Muslim countries’ ‘betrayal’

Uyghur Australians have condemned Muslim-majority member countries of the United Nations Human Rights Council for voting down a debate on allegations of human rights abuses against minorities, including Muslims and Uyghurs in Xinjiang, China, according to the SBSNews.

Among the 19 members who voted against the debate were Pakistan, Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

Australian resident and exiled Uyghur, Arslan Hidayat, described it as another “stab in the back” — singling out the votes from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, both Turkic countries with historical connections to the Uyghur community. “There are Kazakhs and Uzbek in the camps themselves,” he told SBS News.

Ramila Chanisheff, president of the Australian Uyghur Tangritagh Women’s Association, said the “so-called Muslim countries” who voted against the debate “have been bought out by China”.

“Most of these Muslim countries themselves are run by dictators and commit grave human rights abuse, hence their support of a country that commits genocide against its own citizens,” she said.

“Uyghurs are protesting in front of the Indonesian, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan embassies in the US demanding answers as to why they have turned their backs against their Muslim brothers and sisters,” she added.