A MEMORANDUM OF PROTEST AND ACTION

TO
THE EMBASSY OF THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA, KUALA LUMPUR

Stop Persecuting the Uyghur Communities: Recognize their Freedom of Religion and
Rights to Live

We, the undersigned organisations wish to affirm the fundamental rights of every human
being to the right to life and the freedom of religion and belief. This affirmation is recognised
in the charters, declarations and covenants of the international community. Specifically, we
affirm Article 6.3 of the Asian Human Rights Charter which states that “the freedom of
religion and conscience is particularly important in Asia where most people are deeply
religious; many find their primary identity in religion”. The article together with other
express provisions in other International Conventions of Human Rights are the necessary
rights and conditions that serve to protect every human life and interest and make this world a
better place to live in.

On this day 5 July 2019, as the world commemorates the 10th anniversary of the July 5th 2009
Urumqi Massacre, we wish to highlight the critical situation of human rights abuses of the
Uyghur people and many other minority groups across the Xinjiang (East Turkestan) area.
We note that the human rights violations of the Uyghurs people and their respective
communities have increased significantly resulting in the rapid deterioration of the welfare
and wellbeing of the Uyghur people.

In February 2019, the United Nations Human Rights Council released a report which
documented Chinese authorities as having detained people without the due process of the law
and placed them in “political education” camps for their perceived disloyalty to the
government. It is reported that detainees in these camps are subjected to force political
indoctrination, renunciation of their faith, mistreatment, and in some cases torture. Such acts
could certainly be deemed as persecution on the basis of one’s faith and religion. It is
contemptuous and should never be tolerated. In recent months, other UN officials, human
rights organizations, and independent journalists have also supported such findings.

There are also restrictive legislation, suppression of the highest order and repressive policies
in placed which the Uyghurs people routinely find themselves subjected to. Uyghurs are not
allowed to peacefully practice their religion, to speak or move freely or even to be to be
educated in their native language. This is all the worst when many Uyghurs are arbitrarily
detained, confined in “political re-education” camps or made to disappear while in custody of
Chinese authorities. These are grave human rights violations on the right to life and freedom
of religion and belief.

For these reasons, we, the undersigned organisations strongly urge and demand the Chinese
government to do as follows:

1. Respect the human rights of the Uyghur people, in particular their right to life and
freedom of religion and belief. This is especially so when human rights such as the
right to life and freedom of religion and belief is not something that can be bestowed
or taken away by a government but intrinsic in every person as part of human dignity
and worth.
 2. As the world and international community continues to witness and hear reports of
gross abuses and the rapidly deteriorating situation of the Uyghurs, the Chinese
government must desist and immediately stop the persecution and extreme repression
of the Uyghur people.
3. The Chinese government must immediately end the use of “re-education” camps as
hundreds of thousands of innocent Uyghurs have been rounded up by the Chinese
authorities into these camps to suffer physical abuse, maltreatment and even torture.
Some have been found to have vanished in these camps.

We, the undersigned organisations also call on the international community to do the
following:

1. To increase the voices of protest and disfavour upon the Chinese government for acts
and omissions that do not respect and uphold the human rights of all people, including
the Uyghur people and other religious minorities or communities who are prevented
from having the freedom of religion and belief and the rights to a meaningful life.
2. To work together to improve the situation for the Uyghur people through concrete
actions that wholly accounts for the history, traditions, language, religion and the
culture of the Uyghur people. Priority should be given to address attempts at force
cultural assimilation that could quite possibly lead to the annihilation of Uyghur
identity.

As the situation of the Uyghur people in Xinjiang (East Turkestan) and other religious
minorities in other parts of China continues to worsen or deteriorate, we ask the people from
all parts of the world to pray and take steps to care for the lives and well-being of the Uyghur
people and other religious minorities that are persecuted and under threat from the Chinese
government. At all cost, human rights violations that are pervasive such as persecution on
cultural and religious grounds, arbitrary arrests and the silencing of peaceful dissent must be
resisted and cannot be allowed to fester and ferment.

In furtherance of this purpose, we the undersigned organisation acknowledge and

affirm this Memorandum of Protest.

Dated ……………………….

Signed and Acknowledged by

1. Coalition of Malaysians 4 Uyghur

2. Muslim Youth Movement Malaysia (ABIM)
3. Majlis Perundingan Islam Malaysia (MAPIM)
4. Wadah Pencerdasan Umat Malaysia (WADAH)
5. Pertubuhan Ikram Malaysia (IKRAM)
6. Global Peace Mission Malaysia (GPM)
7. Sekretariat Himpunan Ulama Rantau Asia (SYURA)
8. Persatuan Kebangsaan Pelajar Islam Malaysia (PKPIM)
9. Pertubuhan Iqra’ Malaysia
10. Malaysian Youth Council (MBM)