ACE Forum: Rebiya Kadeer

September 18, 2010 1 Comment

The Vanderbilt Political Review has joined with other college political publications to form the

Alliance of Collegiate Editors (ACE), hoping to generate cross-campus dialogue on political issues. Rebiya Kadeer, a prominent Uighur rights activist currently living in exile in the U.S., has agreed to answer some of our questions. You can read Ms. Kadeer’s biography in the New York Times here.

Berkeley Political Review

1. There has been much talk in American academia in recent years of the need for a more open and democratic China. While government officials in China have generally proven highly reluctant toward this idea, the Global Times recently quoted Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao as saying that “Without the political reform, China may lose what it has already achieved through economic restructuring and the targets of its modernization drive might not be reached.” How does the Uighur movement for greater autonomy and human rights fit into China’s overall struggle to accommodate increased political and social change in the coming decades?

In February 2007, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao stated on the Chinese government’s mouthpiece, People’s Daily, that democracy was a distant goal and China must stick to socialism for another 100 years. Therefore, his current statement urging for political reform seems contradictory. This probably demonstrates the public pressure the Chinese government is currently under compared three years ago. It is our hope that China moves sooner into the direction of embracing democracy, respecting human rights and establishing the rule of law. We believe it will be much easier for the Uighur people to find a negotiated agreement on the Question of East Turkestan with a democratic government rather than the current authoritarian government. We strongly support the democratization of China with all groups, including Chinese democrats overseas.

If China wants to initiate political reform, then China should start respecting its own Constitution and recognize Xinjiang/East Turkestan as a genuine autonomous region. That is a starting point.

2. Where would you like to see East Turkistan, also known as China’s Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region, ten or fifteen years from now?

I’d like to see positive changes taking place in East Turkestan in the next decade in terms the political situation there. I’d like to see the Uighur people enjoy human rights, freedom, genuine autonomy and protection of their unique ethnic identity.

3. The Uighur struggle has been largely ignored by the Western media, especially in comparison to the similar plight of your Tibetan neighbours to the South. Why do you think this is, and what are your plans, present and future, to bring increased visibility to the movement throughout the U.S. and the rest of the World?

The Uighur struggle is new in the West. Unlike His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Uighur leaders were not able to flee East Turkestan. Since the Chinese occupation, China has done an excellent job of controlling the Uighur population and preventing them from leaving the country and raise international awareness. So it takes time to take root and garner interest for the Uighur situation in the West. We are hoping to raise more awareness in the U.S. and around the world by speaking at all venues, such as universities, conferences, international bodies, churches, mosques and more. We want to speak to journalists, researchers, policy-makers, officials and historians.

Columbia Political Review

1. Do you see yourself as a champion for something larger than the Uighur cause in China, such as an overall reform of the Chinese government, a secession of the Uighur people, a pan-Turkic movement, or any other cause? Or have you always maintained a stance firmly on Uighur issues—and if so, why limit yourself to that when your experience has been indicative of deeper ills in the Chinese system?

I am the leader of the Uighur people. In fact, I’d like to help all oppressed peoples no matter which country they belong to. At present, I’d like to focus on the Uighur struggle as they are persecuted most in China. I believe it is the moral duty of all free people in the West to support the Uighur cause and our peaceful struggle for freedom and human rights. We are not interested in Pan-Turkism or Pan-Islamism.

2. What is your plan—that is to say, what concrete tools and outlets do you intend to use to realize change and how do you believe, if at all, the Chinese government may be forced to change its policies towards the Uighurs? How has your background as an almost accidental leader of your people and as a businesswoman impacted your choice of avenues for advancing your cause?

First, the speed of Chinese persecution of Uighur people is much faster than our efforts to save them from such persecution. China has sped up the systematic assimilation of Uighurs by all necessary means, including the frequent execution of Uighur dissidents. That is why I have called for an international conference of Uighurs to discuss and plan new strategies to help save the Uighur people from Chinese assimilation. We will present our new plan of action in February 2011.

3. Tell us a little bit about the press in Xinjiang. The Chinese policies towards press in the 2009 upheaval were slightly different from those we’ve seen in the past—why was that? And why was it that such a large issue of international importance received so little play in America that now, just over a year later, if you mention the words Uighur, Xinjiang, East Turkistan, or Urumqi to an American, they will just stare at you blankly?

China learned a lesson from the March 2008 unrest in Tibet. China also learned another lesson a year later in Iran. In both cases, the lesson is that it is better to spin your own version of the truth rather than let others define it for you. In the latter case, you lose momentum and you get blamed for hiding the truth. That is why China spun the truth of the Urumchi unrest and allowed foreign reporters to visit Urumchi to confirm its own version of the truth and deceive the international community.

East Turkestan is remote and Uighur is hard to spell and pronounce for Americans. Many Americans are simply not interested in the politics of a distant country and the oppression faced by an unknown people who are hardly related to them. So it is no surprise that they forget. That is why raising awareness is so important for us at the moment.

Harvard Political Review

1. Without using broad phrases such as “human/civil rights,” what are the minimal or most crucial concessions that you believe would be acceptable from the Central Government in order to improve relations? What do you think are realistic long-term goals? What have you done towards accomplishing those goals?

First, China should recognize the autonomy status of East Turkestan and implement the Real Ethnic Autonomy Laws according to China’s Constitution. If China respected the Uighur Autonomy established in 1955 and implemented the autonomy laws, then we wouldn’t have seen the political situation on the ground deteriorate to the explosive situation as it has today.

Second, China should disband the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corp, or “Bingtuan” in Chinese, which is not part of the autonomy. Third, China should immediately suspend the transfer of Han population into East Turkestan. Fourth, China should abolish the so-called bilingual language policy, which is intended to remove the Uighur language from all walks of life.

Fifth, China should stop all institutionalized policies of discrimination and persecution against Uighurs. Then, relations will naturally improve on the ground. A realistic long-term goal is to have China honor the autonomy arrangement, which is in China’s interest because the agreement is already recognized under China’s Constitution. It is easy for China to implement the agreement if China has the political will.

2. What leverage do the Uighur people have against the local and Central Government, outside of violent means? If you were given the opportunity to negotiate with the government on behalf of Uighurs, how would you convince them to make concessions? What’s “in it for them”?

The Uighur people are already putting enormous pressure on the Chinese government through their peaceful protests. China spends billions of dollars each year on security forces in the region in order to clamp down on Uighurs and stabilize the region. Furthermore, China spends millions of dollars to target overseas Uighur activists and their organizations. However, the political situation in East Turkestan is getting worse and not stabilized at all. China should recognize the strategic importance of East Turkestan. Without East Turkestan’s rich natural resources, the rise of China as a global power is unsustainable. The instability in East Turkestan threatens China’s ability to focus more on external affairs. Therefore, to create genuine stability in the region is in China’s best interest. To create such stability, China should implement the autonomy conferred to the Uighur people in 1955. Otherwise, repression is not going to create any peace, harmony or stability in the region as it has already proven.

3. It is often the case in China that the provinces’ relative degree of autonomy actually hinders the central government from imposing uniform policy or control. How does that apply in the Xinjiang context, how “autonomous” is Xinjiang (especially given its “autonomous” labelling) and how might regional autonomy in this case make achieving progress more or less difficult?

Just like Tibetans, Uighurs are not Chinese. Therefore, China’s imposition of uniform policies do not necessarily work in Tibet and East Turkestan. In fact, there is no autonomy at all in both regions. Genuine high degree of autonomy will most likely prevent separatism, such as in the case of Hong Kong.

Today, Hong Kong enjoys the highest form of autonomy under the one country two systems arrangement. Hong Kong runs its own internal affairs. It has a separate flag, separate currency, separate police force, and separate identity. However, China is still controlling Hong Kong and imposing central government’s policies to a certain extent. The one country two systems is considered a great progress by both China and the international community.

Penn Political Review

1. How do you compare the status of ethnic minorities in the United States to that of ethnic minorities in China?

It is impossible to compare as the U.S. is a constitutional democracy ruled by law and China is an authoritarian state ruled by the iron fist of the CCP. In the U.S., minorities are equal with the majority before the law. Unlike the Uighurs, Tibetans and other minorities in China, minorities in the U.S. are not systematically, institutionally and grossly discriminated against by the majority population.

2. What is your relationship with leaders from other Muslim nations? Does this affect your relationship with the United States and other western countries?

I really do not have much relationship with leaders from other Muslim nations. Most leaders of the Muslim nations believe in Chinese government’s propaganda that Uighur Muslims enjoy true religious freedom, which is certainly not true.

3. Do you believe that China’s policy against Uighur autonomy is motivated mainly by practical concerns (for example, the economic opportunities available to them in Xinjiang) or ideology (for example, the desire for a united and centralized Chinese government and a general distrust of religious minorities)?

It is both. China needs the territory, which is one-sixth of China, and the natural resources. But China sees Uighurs, the masters of East Turkestan, as an impediment to getting both. The rationale then is, China will have everything only if with no more Uighurs. Repression is justified and ongoing.

Some Chinese scholars have also suggested that to settle millions of Chinese, and especially by deploying a large number of Chinese troops, into Xinjiang in order to get rid of the Uighur population, is in China’s strategic interest of preventing American and Indian encroachment into Central Asia.

Vanderbilt Political Review

1. What do you foresee happening with the Uighurs who have refused to accept asylum in Switzerland, Palau, and Bermuda, essentially choosing to remain in captivity in Guantanamo? Do you believe it is better for these men to remain in captivity than to live in a country without an established Uighur community?

Uighurs didn’t refuse to accept asylum in Switzerland and Bermuda. Some didn’t want to go to Palau because it is too close to China and has no navy to defend them. Furthermore, they would not be given permanent residency or citizenship status in Palau. That is why they refused to go there.

2. Every activist has a model or source of inspiration that they look towards when planning and organizing protests. Who was your model?

I admire Gandhi and Vaclav Havel. I like their ways of organizing peaceful protest.

3. Tell us about that moment right before you publicly criticized the Chinese government in your speech before the CCP’s National People’s Consultative Conference. You were an established member of society, an esteemed entrepreneur, a wife, and a mother. For many, factors like these would have silenced many out of fear of losing everything they had gained in society. But you didn’t remain silent. How did your prepare yourself for something of this nature?

I knew the tragic political situation of Uighurs from all walks of life really well as I had frequently visited villages, towns and cities to do business. I personally felt the injustice as a child. I grew up with a sense of fighting for justice for the oppressed. Such sense for justice and love of my people didn’t allow me to remain silent.

Sometimes you just need to take the risks in the interest of your long-suffering people, knowing that you will have to make tremendous sacrifices. That is what I did. If I remained silent, then who will speak on behalf of the oppressed Uighurs? All the sufferings of my people, my family, and my childhood prepared me to speak out and take on this important responsibility as the leader of the Uighur people.

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