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Date ______________
Mr. Jacques Rogge
President
International Olympic Committee
Château de Vidy
1007 Lausanne
Switzerland
Dear Mr. Rogge,
We are writing to express our strong belief that
holding the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing is not
only contrary to the spirit of the Olympics, but
will also bring dishonor to the Games. How can the
Olympics take place in a country whose people are
constantly facing persecution and torture? How can
the Games be hosted in a place that has no basic
human rights, no freedom of speech and no freedom to
organize? The Beijing Olympics will further injure
an already bleeding people. If you are not familiar
with the darkness and bloodshed of the People’s
Republic of China, please allow us to describe it
for you.
Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China was
originally known as East Turkistan until it came
under the control of the Chinese Communist Party in
1949. Since then Uyghurs, who are the main ethnic
group in this region, have been suffering under a
government-led ethnic cleansing policy. In September
2004, the Party Secretary of Xinjinag Uyghur
Autonomous Region, Wang Lequan, expressed pride in
creating this atmosphere of repression boasting that
“we have cracked down on 22 separatist cases in 8
months and executed 50 people.”
According to an Amnesty International report,
between 1997 and 1999, 190 Uyghurs were executed in
China for political reasons. The East Turkistan
Information Center estimates that more than 3000
executions occurred between May 2004 and May 2007,
and more than 10,000 have been carried out since
1997.
The PRC is attempting to create peaceful conditions
for the Olympics by supporting violent and
aggressive policies. It is trying to make peace by
killing and repression. The human rights violations
on the part of China’s government are obvious. The
organization Human Rights Watch documents the
following campaigns, which have had a devastating
effect on East Turkistan’s Uyghur population:
1996: The first "strike hard" campaign targets "splittism
and illegal religious activities”;
1997: "Rectification of social order" campaign;
1998: "People's war" against "separatist and
religious extremists";
1999: "100 days strike hard" and "general campaign
against terrorism";
2000: "Focused rectification of religious
institutions campaign";
2001: Two-year "strike hard" campaign;
2002: Post-9/11 "strike hard, maximum pressure"
campaign;
2003: Special "100 days strike hard" campaign;
2004: "Strike hard, maximum pressure" campaign
against "separatism, religious extremism, and
terrorist forces" extended indefinitely.
In addition, we would like to inform you of the
following state-led terrorism responsible for
killing, imprisoning, and torturing many Uyghurs.
In 2005, in order to celebrate the Xinjiang Uyghur
Autonomous Region’s 50th anniversary, China arrested
and imprisoned numerous Uyghurs in the name of
“enhancing security”. In 2006, Uyghurs were again
terrorized under a campaign to “crack down on the
three evil forces”. Every year, on the eve of
Chinese New Year, Uyghurs face mass arrests and
torture.
Is it necessary to host the Olympic Games in a place
without peace? The Chinese government holds the
Olympic Torch in one hand and a murder weapon in the
other. This is a serious humiliation for the Olympic
Games.
The Chinese government has not limited itself to the
killing of Uyghurs in their own land, but have also
been hunting Uyghurs all over the world.
In January 2002, under pressure from the Chinese
government, Nepalese authorities forcibly returned
Shaheer Ali, who had been recognized as a refugee by
the Office of the United
Nations High Commissioner
for Refugees (UNHCR). According to the most recent
information, Yusup Kadir Tohti and Abdukadir Sidik
were being held in an undisclosed location after
being forcibly returned to China from Kazakhstan in
May 2006. These two men are at risk of receiving the
death penalty. Ismail Semed was deported from
Pakistan in 2003 and executed in February 2007.
Uyghur-Canadian Huseyin Celil was detained while
visiting his family in Uzbekistan and returned to
China in 2006. Mr. Celil was sentenced to life by
the Chinese authorities.
These are just a few examples. We understand that
there are weak countries supporting the PRC regime
for their own political, economic and strategic
benefit. But how can we understand the position of
the International Olympic Committee on this issue?
Hosting the Olympic Games in Beijing, in spite of
the gross human rights violations in that country,
will encourage other authoritarian regimes and
hinder efforts working towards world peace. It will
also discourage people in other countries who are
seeking democracy and freedom.
As a member of the world community, Uyghurs request
that If the IOC seeks to promote peace, it should
take away the Olympic Torch from the hand of the
Chinese government.
World Uyghur Congress
Signature ______________________
Name ______________________
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