Turkish Forum

Category: Uzbekistan

  • Turkey Bolsters Ties With Turkic States

    Turkey Bolsters Ties With Turkic States

    Turkey Bolsters Ties With Turkic States Turkey Bolsters Ties With Turkic States

    Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor Volume: 7 Issue: 170

    September 22, 2010

    By Saban Kardas

    Turkey hosted the tenth summit of Turkic-speaking countries in Istanbul on September 16. The Istanbul summit, bringing together Turkish, Kazakh, Azeri, Kyrgyz and Turkmen leaders, took steps towards furthering institutionalizing this inter-governmental platform, in line with the conclusions of the previous meeting in Nakhchivan in October 2009. Through the Nakhchivan declaration, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan had formed a Turkic-Speaking Countries Cooperation Council –or Turkish Council, as Turkey seeks to promote it. In Istanbul, the leaders agreed to implement measures to make the new bodies operational, including the Council of Heads of State, Council of Foreign Ministers, Council of Senior Foreign Ministry Officials, Wise Men’s Council and Permanent Secretariat. Moreover, they agreed to set up other institutions to protect joint cultural heritage, form a union of universities, and create a fund to support research activities (Anadolu Ajansi, September 16; for an English text of the final declaration, see: Today’s Zaman, September 17).

    Turkish President, Abdullah Gul, the host of the summit, emphasized the importance of the meeting to strengthen the commonalities among the brotherly nations in terms of language, history, religion and cultural values. He called upon the leaders to diversify relations in various areas. The leaders attending the summit highlighted the role of this burgeoning cooperation in contributing to peace and pledged to deepen solidarity to boost regional stability, human rights and a market economy.

    The conclusions of the meeting reflect the Turkish government’s desire to play a greater leadership role in the Turkish speaking world. Although Ankara sought to forge closer ties among these states in the early post-Cold War period, it failed to realize this ambitious objective. However, in recent years, the Turkish government has demonstrated its willingness to revitalize cooperation among Turkic countries. The recent decisions are, thus, products of Ankara’s determined moves in that direction (EDM, November 23, 2008). After the Nakhchivan declaration was passed last year, Gul presented it as a major success on Turkey’s part (www.euractiv.com.tr, October 6, 2009). Turkey expects the Turkish Council to develop based on the model of other similar organizations, such as the Commonwealth, Arab League or Francophonie (www.tcbb.gov.tr, September 16). Nonetheless, in an example of the limitations before this objective the Kazakh, Turkmen and Kyrgyz leaders spoke at times in Russian during the summit (Dogan Haber Ajansi, September 16).

    In a move that underscored Turkey’s leadership role, the first rotating presidency was assumed by Turkey and a senior Turkish diplomat, Halil Akinci, former ambassador to Moscow, was appointed as the Secretary-General of the council (Zaman, September 16). So far, there have been irregular summits as well as bilateral meetings between different states. Ankara believes the establishment of a permanent secretariat in Istanbul would increase the visibility of the council in regional and international affairs and contribute to the institutionalization of governmental ties.

    Speaking at the summit, Gul went as far as maintaining that “from now on, we are one nation, but six states.” The phrase “one nation, two states,” has been used to define the warm ties between Turkey and Azerbaijan. It remains to be seen if other Turkic states will embrace it to the same extent to identify themselves so closely with Turkey. Ankara has been unable to convince all Turkic states to participate. Uzbekistan has deliberately avoided attending the summits since the early 2000’s. Turkmenistan has also been aloof to this platform for some time. In that sense, Turkmenistan’s representation at the Istanbul summit can be considered as a positive step. Nonetheless, referring to its foreign policy principle of “positive neutrality,” Turkmenistan did not sign the Nakhchivan declaration. Uzbekistan again was absent from the Istanbul summit, underscoring continuing divisions.

    Besides its importance for intra-Turkic cooperation, the Istanbul summit also provided a venue for the participating leaders to hold various bilateral meetings with their counterparts to discuss issues of specific relevance. Turkey, for its part, used that opportunity to deepen ties with Azerbaijan. On the margins of the summit, Turkish Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Azeri President, Ilham Aliyev, signed a framework agreement to form the High Level Strategic Cooperation Council (Hurriyet, September 15). Ankara has signed similar agreements with several countries, mainly its Middle Eastern neighbors. The agreement with Baku was in preparation for some time, and its conclusion further highlights Ankara repairing its ties with Azerbaijan following the row caused by the Turkish-Armenian normalization process.

    Moreover, the energy ministers from Turkey, Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan discussed energy cooperation. Ankara already has an agreement to purchase Turkmen gas, provided that transit problems are resolved. Thus, Turkey wants to contribute to the resolution of the disputes between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan, for it would also deepen cooperation as part of the East-West energy corridor and enable the export of Turkmen gas to Europe through Turkey. Turkish Energy Minister, Taner Yildiz, noted that they avoided discussing the status of the Caspian Sea, especially border issues. He stressed that it could still be possible to develop trilateral cooperation in some undisputed sectors of the Caspian even before other major issues were resolved. Azeri Energy Minister, Natiq Aliyev, also expressed hope that the remaining disagreements could be resolved so that Turkmen gas could be exported through the Caspian and Azerbaijan. The Turkish side welcomed this meeting as a positive step, which might boost prospects for the Nabucco pipeline (Anadolu Ajansi, September 15).

    For some time, the Turkish government has been criticized for its neglect of Central Asia in its foreign policy priorities (EDM, June 25). In contrast, the government has presented its recent steps in the South Caucasus and Central Asia as proof that it has been pursuing a multidimensional foreign policy. Therefore, Ankara widely publicized the Istanbul summit as a great success. Nonetheless, those skeptical of the government urge caution and argue that one should wait to see if the declaration will be matched with deeds before judging the success of the government’s recent initiatives within the Turkic world (www.211yyte.org, September 17).

    https://jamestown.org/program/turkey-bolsters-ties-with-turkic-states/

  • Why Russia’s Medvedev is blasting ally Kyrgyzstan

    Why Russia’s Medvedev is blasting ally Kyrgyzstan

    Russian President Dmitry Medvedev unexpectedly criticized a government reform vote in Kyrgyzstan that passed Sunday with 91 percent support.

    Kyrgyzstan's interim leader Roza Otunbayeva (front l.) greets a group of ethnic Kyrgyz citizens at a polling station on the day of a referendum in the city of Osh Sunday.

    Sagyn Alchiyev/Kyrgyz Presidential Press/Reuters

    MoscowTurbulent Kyrgyzstan's weekend referendum on reforming its political system has won overwhelming support from the population. But Russia, Kyrgyzstan's closest ally, has unexpectedly criticized the effort. Skip to next paragraph

    Russian President Dmitry Medvedev arrive in advance of the G8 and G20 Summit at Pearson International Airport in Toronto, Thursday.

    Gerry Broome/AP

    Enlarge

    Related Stories

    • To make progress on Afghanistan and Russia, Obama must get Kyrgyzstan right
    • Kyrgyzstan riots led to ethnic cleansing; government blames Bakiyev
    • All Russia news coverage
    Speaking to journalists at the G-20 meeting in Toronto, President Dmitry Medvedev poured cold water on the referendum's goal of changing Kyrgyzstan's Constitution from a president-dominated system into one in which a popularly-elected parliament holds the lion's share of power. He also warned that the tiny central Asian country faced the "threat of breaking up" and being overrun by "extremists." The referendum passed Sunday with 91 percent of voters backing the government's reform plan. International observers, led by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, praised the polling. Others in the international community have expressed hope that the referendum, to be followed by parliamentary elections in October, would help Kyrgyzstan recover and rebuild after devastating ethnic riots killed around 2,000 people and displaced hundreds of thousands in the country's volatile south earlier this month. Experts say the vote marks a major step toward legitimizing the fractious interim government in Bishkek, which came to power in a Moscow-backed coup d'etat that was thinly disguised as a popular revolt in April. Now Moscow is expressing disenchantment with the government's big win. "Taking into account the fact that even now the authorities are unable to impose order, that the legitimacy of the authorities is low and its support creates a host of questions, I do not really understand how a parliamentary republic would look and work in Kyrgyzstan," Mr. Medvedev said. "Will this not lead to a chain of eternal problems – to reshuffles in parliament, to the rise to power of this or that political group, to authority being passed constantly from one hand to another, and, finally, will this not help those with extremist views to power?" he said. "This concerns me."

    Analysts confused by Russian move

    Analysts say they are unsure what Medvedev might have been hoping to achieve by trashing the plan, since Russia's only hope of restoring stability in the region appears to ride with interim government head Roza Otunbayeva, whom it has supported since she came to power in April. But Russia dithered while riots shook Kyrgyzstan this month, and then decided against intervening in the turmoil, despite Kremlin assertions that the former Soviet Union constitutes a Russian "sphere of influence." Some analysts say Medvedev was voicing his frustration with what Moscow sees as a deteriorating situation in central Asia, which it seems increasingly incapable of dealing with. "In Moscow they are deeply disappointed with the interim government in Bishkek, which they had hoped would be stronger," says Alexei Malshenko, an expert with the Carnegie Center in Moscow. "But Russia's inaction reveals it as impotent to affect events in the region. It's a tragedy for Russian foreign policy, and this appearance of helplessness will encourage all of Moscow's enemies to be more active." Others argue that, while Medvedev's remarks may have been unhelpful, they merely expressed the traditional Russian skepticism about parliaments, which have always been seen as too fractious and divisive to impose decisive rule. Russia's own Kremlin-centered Constitution – which leaves parliament with mostly ornamental functions – was authored by former president Boris Yeltsin, after he dispersed his freely-elected but disobedient legislature with gunfire in 1993 "In Russia there is mistrust toward the very idea of a parliamentary republic," says Leonid Gusev, an expert with the official Institute of World Economy and International relations, which trains Russian diplomats. "Medvedev just said what he was thinking."

    Reforms aimed at stability

    Ms. Otunbayeva has championed the constitutional reform as a means of breaking Kyrgyzstan's repetitive cycle of corrupt all-powerful presidents, whose excesses have triggered two street revolts in barely five years. On Monday Otunbayeva said that popular support for the measures means that Kyrgyzstan is now on the path to "a true government of the people... this is a very important, historic day for the country. The people have put a stop to the epoch of authoritarian and nepotistic government," she said. But many analysts fear that Kyrgyzstan may face more disruptions, including attempts by supporters of former president Kurmanbek Bakiyev, who went into exile in Belarus after being deposed in April. Mr. Bakiyev is accused of stirring up the ethnic animosities that led to the deadly upheavals in southern Kyrgyzstan this month, a charge that he denies. But in an interview with the German magazine Der Spiegel today, Bakiyev pours scorn on Otunbayeva's democracy plans, saying they are "leading the country into a dead end", and warns that Kyrgyzstan's powerful political clans may soon turn against the interim president. "The referendum may be the beginning of a process of legitimizing the new authorities, and if we get to the parliamentary elections it will be strengthened," says Alexander Knyazev, a Bishkek-based analyst. "The crisis does appear to be over for the moment, but we don't know what Bakiyev and his supporters may be up to," he says. "Another crisis looks fully possible." RELATED STORIES:
    • To make progress on Afghanistan and Russia, Obama must get Kyrgyzstan right
    • Kyrgyzstan riots led to ethnic cleansing; government blames Bakiyev
    • All Russia news coverage

  • Uzbeks Targeted in South Kyrgyzstan

    Uzbeks Targeted in South Kyrgyzstan
    Destruction of Uzbek Property Systemic; Aid Distribution Difficult
    The destruction caused by rioters looting and burning their way through ethnic Uzbek neighborhoods in Osh, Kyrgyzstan, was systematic and thorough, says a Human Rights Watch team on the ground.
    In one neighborhood, the rioters – often ethnic Kyrgyz – burned down more than 400 homes, a mosque and a school. Homes owned by ethnic Kyrgyz remain standing. One man described how gangs drove through the neighborhood, torched houses, and shot at people trying to flee.
    The violence has subsided, but many ethnic Uzbeks don’t dare leave their neighborhoods. Human Rights Watch documented several cases in which ethnic Uzbeks were assaulted by men in camouflage when trying to enter a hospital or pick up humanitarian aid. This, along with the unstable security situation, makes distributing aid difficult.
    There are surprisingly few police or soldiers in the city, raising serious questions about whether government forces there could contain any flare-up of the conflict.
    Since the rioting began last Thursday, hundreds of people, mostly ethnic Uzbeks, have been killed and more than 1,000 injured. Uzbekistan has closed its border after taking in roughly 100,000 refugees. This border needs to remain open for those seeking refuge.
    The International community should work with the Kyrgyz government, which took control two months ago after protests toppled the previous leadership. They should provide for the protection and humanitarian needs of all people.
    Kyrgyzstan: Decisive Action Needed to Rein in Violence
    Urgent Need for Humanitarian Measures as Attacks Continue
    June 13, 2010

    Men walk past a burning building in the city of Osh.

    © 2010 Reuters

    Ethnic Uzbek refugees wait to cross the border to Uzbekistan near the village of Jalal-Kuduk on June 14, 2010, after fleeing the violence in Kyrgyzstan.

    © 2010 Reuters
    Related Materials:
    Kyrgyzstan: UN Should Act to Help End Violence
    Kyrgyzstan: Protect All Ethnic Groups

    People are desperate to escape the violence but without international assistance there’s no way out, and every minute of delay is costing lives.

    Andrea Berg, Central Asia researcher at Human Rights Watch

    (Osh) – The government of Kyrgyzstan should take immediate measures to ensure safety for people attempting to flee unchecked violence in southern Kyrgyzstan, Human Rights Watch said today. Human Rights Watch reiterated its call for a UN-mandated force to assist the Kyrgyz government in providing protection and stopping ethnic violence engulfing Osh and spreading to other cities in southern Kyrgyzstan.

    “People are desperate to escape the violence but without international assistance there’s no way out, and every minute of delay is costing lives,” said Andrea Berg, Central Asia researcher at Human Rights Watch, who left Osh on June 13, 2010. “The Kyrgyz authorities need to set up effective measures to protect people and negotiate safe access for those who want to flee.”

    Arson and other attacks continued on June 13, with residents reporting that a school and homes were on fire. A man in one ethnic Uzbek neighborhood in the center of Osh described to Human Rights Watch how gangs would drive through the neighborhood, set houses on fire, and shoot at people trying to flee. The gangs would leave when the military arrived, but then return as soon as the military left the neighborhood.

    Eyewitnesses in Cherеmyshki, a neighborhood just west of the city center, told Human Rights Watch that gangs torched Uzbek houses and shot at people who attempted to flee. Gangs surrounded the neighborhood, preventing many from escaping.

    A Human Rights Watch researcher saw burned out neighborhoods, burned cars, and barricaded neighborhoods, with some lone buildings and cars – marked KG, presumably for “Kyrgyz” – untouched.

    The government of Kyrgyzstan sent security forces to Osh on June 12 and granted them shoot-to-kill authority, which Human Rights Watch said would inevitably lead to violations of the right to life.  A man from Cheremyshki told Human Rights Watch that uniformed personnel and others clearly identified as official forces were also involved in the shooting in the neighborhood, although it is unclear if the Uzbeks were armed or presented any threat.

    Meanwhile, ethnic violence worsened in Jalal-Abad, 50 miles from Osh, with Akipress, a Kyrgyz wire service, reporting gunfights and torching of homes, and that ethnic Uzbeks had fled.

    The humanitarian situation in Osh and at the Kyrgyz-Uzbek border has grown increasingly desperate. A Human Rights Watch staff member in Osh received a flood of telephone calls from desperate people begging for assistance with evacuation, food, and medical aid. Several callers told Human Rights Watch that vulnerable groups including children and pregnant women are in especially urgent need for food and medical assistance. Humanitarian aid groups present in the city when the attacks began have not been able to provide assistance due to the dangerous security situation.

    The poor security situation has also prevented delivery of humanitarian supplies to the thousands of ethnic Uzbeks who are fleeing the violence and massing at different points along the border with Uzbekistan.

    Human Rights Watch called on the international community to work with the Kyrgyz government to provide for the protection and humanitarian needs of ethnic Uzbeks who are fleeing the violence and massing at different points along the border with Uzbekistan.

    One source told Human Rights Watch that an Uzbek friend had said that gangs had driven toward the border and shot at people gathered there. It is not known whether any one was harmed as a result.

    “The international community urgently needs to work with the government of Kyrgyzstan to ensure that humanitarian supplies can be delivered to the border areas,” Berg said.

    Human Rights Watch also urged the government of Uzbekistan to keep the border open and allow all those seeking protection to cross. Although Uzbekistan has not ratified the 1951 Refugee Convention, Human Rights Watch urged the government of Uzbekistan at least to provide temporary protection to all Kyrgyz nationals seeking entry at the border and to allow the UN High Commissioner for Refugees to provide emergency assistance for them.

    Human Rights Watch also urged the Kyrgyz government to reverse its decision to give security forces powers to shoot to kill. It further urged all parties that engage in law enforcement action to adhere to the UN Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials and the Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials, which call for law enforcement officials to take steps to preserve and protect human life and resort to lethal force only as a last resort.
    Photo: © 2010 Reuters
  • Uzbek, Turkmen Reps Skip Turkic-Speaking Assembly

    Uzbek, Turkmen Reps Skip Turkic-Speaking Assembly

    88867A0E 1BC8 48F2 9BAF 840C6057122D mw203 sThe Uzbek parliament building in Tashkent (file photo)
    October 02, 2009
    BAKU — Uzbek and Turkmen deputies did not attend the Parliamentary Assembly of Turkic-Speaking countries in Baku, RFE/RL’s Azerbaijani and Uzbek services report.

    Azerbaijani political analyst Ilgar Mammadov told RFE/RL that a possible reason the deputies skipped the September 22-23 session is because Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan lack “genuine parliaments” and were prohibited by their governments from attending.

    He added that the parliaments in Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan have turned into “notary’s offices” that rubberstamp bills put forth by their governments. Mammadov said that among the Turkic-speaking countries some degree of “genuine parliamentary activity” can be found only in Turkey.

    Uzbek political analyst Farhod Tolipov told RFE/RL that Uzbekistan did not attend the assembly for “subjective reasons.” He explained that slogans such as “Turkestan is our home” — a reference to a pan-Turkic entity — could be frequently heard in Uzbekistan, but in recent years Central Asian countries have become more nationalistic and distanced themselves from each other.

    Initiated by Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev in 2006, the Parliamentary Assembly of Turkic-Speaking Countries is designed to gather delegates from Turkey, Azerbaijan, and the five Central Asian countries. The next meeting of the assembly is to be held in Astana in 2010.

    https://www.rferl.org/a/Uzbek_Turkmen_Reps_Skip_TurkicSpeaking_Assembly/1842008.html
  • Anger China or defend Uighurs? Turkey walks fine line.

    Anger China or defend Uighurs? Turkey walks fine line.

    Beijing urged Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan to retract his statement that China is committing “genocide” against its Muslim minority.

    c2Istanbul – Developments in China’s restive Xinjiang Province and the attacks against the minority Muslim Uighurs there may not have led to vocal protests in most of the Muslim world. But in Turkey, the events in western China have led to large protests in the streets and strong words from Turkish officials.

    The comment raising the loudest outcry has been Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s accusation last week that China is committing “genocide” against the Uighurs, a statement that Beijing is now pressuring him to retract.

    Experts say that taking its criticism of China too far could backfire on Ankara, which has been working to improve both its diplomatic and trade relations with Beijing.

    An estimated 184 people have died in the recent violent clashes between Uighurs and ethnic Han Chinese in Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang. Chinese officials have claimed that most of those killed have been Han.

    Turkey’s minister of industry and trade, Nihat Ergun, last week called for a boycott of Chinese goods, while Mr. Erdogan, speaking on television last Friday, said: “The incidents in China are, simply put, tantamount to genocide. There’s no point in interpreting this otherwise.”

    Uighurs as ‘brothers’

    “There is a lot of sensitivity among the Turkish public about the Uighurs. They consider them as real brothers,” says Sami Kohen, a political affairs columnist for Milliyet, a Turkish daily.

    “Turks originally came from that part of Asia to Anatolia, and the language that Uighurs use is much closer to the language that Turkey speaks than others in Central Asia,” he continues.

    The Turkish president’s official flag, for example, has 16 stars on it, representing “Turkish states” established throughout history. One of the stars commemorates the Uighur state that existed around the 8th century.

    Adds Mr. Kohen: “There is quite a large Uighur community in Turkey, and they are quite strong. They have a lobby and they have been quite strong in defending their cause.”

    Turkey raises its global profile

    Turkey has, in recent years, been working to raise its foreign policy profile and establish itself as a regional political and economic power. Turkey’s president, Abdullah Gul, actually visited Urumqi as part of a recent state visit shortly before the violence broke out there. Turkey signed a reported $1.5 billion worth of trade deals during the visit.

    But analysts say Ankara’s criticism could lead to a rupture with Beijing.

    “The Turks really have a tough decision to make, whether they keep this going or back off. This is a major test for Turkey’s new foreign policy,” says Bulent Aliriza, director of the Turkey Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. “This is a serious problem for the Turks from every angle.”

    Ankara now also needs to decide if it will grant a possible request to visit Turkey by Rebiya Kadeer, a Uighur diaspora activist based in the United States whom China has accused of being behind the violence in Xinjiang.

    “All hell is going to break loose if she shows up in Turkey, especially after the comment that Erdogan made,” Mr. Aliriza says.

    Take it back, China says

    The Chinese government now appears to be pushing back against Turkey. A Tuesday editorial in the government-controlled English-language China Daily urged Erdogan to “take back his remarks … which constitute interference in China’s internal affairs.”

    Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, in a phone conversation with his Turkish counterpart, blamed the violence in Xinjiang on “three evil forces,” state news agency Xinhua said, referring to “extremism, separatism, and terrorism.”

    For Turkey, which has had its share of domestic violence and terrorism, both from Islamic extremists and Kurdish separatists, these are not meaningless words.

    The Christian Science Monitor

  • MASSACRE IN EASTERN TURKISTAN by Hasan Celal Guzel

    MASSACRE IN EASTERN TURKISTAN by Hasan Celal Guzel

    Columnist Hasan Celal Guzel comments on the unrest in China’s Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region. A summary of his column is as follows:

    “Do you know what place, outside Turkey itself, has the world’s largest Turkish population? Eastern Turkistan… There are nearly 38 million Uighur Turks living in eastern Turkistan now, despite the genocidal policies they have faced. The Uighur Turks are the grandchildren of a great culture and civilization which established the Hun, Gokturk, Uighur and Karahanli states, and they are our kin. Did you notice the flag a Uighur Turkish woman was carrying in news reports from Urumchi (the region’s capital) this week? This flag is the same as ours, except for its color. The Uighur Turks in eastern Turkistan have a highly developed Turkish consciousness.

    Eastern Turkistan voluntarily attached itself to the Ottoman Empire during the Yakup Khan era (1820-1887). Yakup Bey sent his son, Yakup Khan Tore (Hodja Tore), to seek help from the Ottoman Sultan Abdulaziz, who then dispatched ships and weapons to Eastern Turkistan. Unfortunately, the region was invaded by the Chinese after Yakup Bey’s death in 1878, but in the 1930s the Uighur Turks rejected the occupation and, after a series of battles, declared the Eastern Turkistan Islam Republic in 1933, and the Eastern Turkistan Republic in 1944. But following communist China’s 1949 invasion, the territory was renamed the Xinjiang (Sincan) Uighur Autonomous Region, and Eastern Turkistan Turks have been trying to survive China’s occupation, captivity and atrocities ever since.

    The late Uighur Turkish leader Isa Yusuf Alptekin, who was my close friend, said that forces have tried to silently erase the Eastern Turkistan Turks from history. The massacre of Uighur Turks by the Chinese army and paramilitaries in Urumchi is happening in front of the eyes of the entire world. Although the official death toll is 156, we know that more than 1,000 Turks have been killed and 6,000 Uighur young people who were detained are being threatened with death. Even as the region’s Chinese governor said that the Turks protesting the cruel regime would be executed, he guaranteed protection to migrant Chinese Hans living there. What’s happening in Eastern Turkistan is no mere massacre, but a genocide. Muslim Turks are used as guinea pigs in nuclear tests; babies are killed due to obligatory abortions; everybody who seeks the right to a humane life and liberty is executed without due process; Chinese militant migrants are being systematically settled in the region year after year; and hundreds of thousands of young people are forced to work in torture work camps. In short, there are widespread and blatant violations of human rights.

    In our country, Turks are called to account for Armenians who were made to emigrate 100 years ago, but nobody talks about the millions of Turks who were massacred in Rumeli, the Caucasus, and the Middle East. Some 800,000 Iraqi Turks who were killed and forced to migrate following the US invasion of Iraq are now all but lost. Think about it: if even a small fraction of the events in Eastern Turkistan had happened somewhere else in the world, how loud would the criticism be? Seyit Tumturk, head of the East Turkistan Culture and Solidarity Association, told me that Uighur Turk leader Rabia Kader might be brought from Washington to Ankara to address the Uighur Turks at a press conference and calm down the situation. We welcome this suggestion. If we stay silent in the face of this massacre so as not to ruin our relations with China, we would be culpable in the eyes of the Turkish nation and history. The remarks made so far from Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu are praiseworthy. But they need to do more. Alptekin wrote shortly before his death that as long as the Eastern Turkistan issue isn’t solved humanely and the sun of liberty doesn’t rise in his country, a stain will forever mark his people. He added that he hoped Turkey would work to solve the Eastern Turkistan issue. We all should second this wish.”

    Turkish Press Review, 9.7.2009

    Aloso other related news / articles:
    China Bans Public Gatherings in Urumqi Amid Mourning
    https://www.bloomberg.com/politics?pid=20601080

    Death Toll Debated In China’s Rioting

    Officially, 184 People Died on Sunday

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/11/AR2009071100464.html?hpid=topnews

    A Strongman Is China’s Rock in Ethnic Strife

    As ethnic Han gangs roamed the streets of Urumqi on Tuesday at dusk, seeking revenge against Muslim Uighur rioters who killed scores of Han two nights earlier, a balding Communist Party bureaucrat abruptly appeared on the city’s television screens to call for calm.

    China’s Ethnic Fault Lines

    Rising tensions and resistance to Beijing’s control challenge China’s ‘harmonious’ society

    https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970203547904574279952210843672

    China’s Ethnic Fault Lines

    Rising tensions and resistance to Beijing’s control challenge China’s ‘harmonious’ society

    https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970203547904574279952210843672

    A Guide to China’s Ethnic Groups

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/08/AR2009070802718.html?hpid=topnews

    Rumbles on the Rim of China’s Empire