Event featuring Uyghur activist cancelled in Buenos Aires — Buenos Aires Times
An event at the Buenos Aires City Legislature in Argentina, where Uyghur activist Dolkun Isa was due to speak, was cancelled. The event was moved to another venue. Isa said the decision may have resulted from pressure from China through diplomatic channels.
The activist said this in an interview with Buenos Aires Times. According to him, Chinese authorities sought to disrupt an event organised by the human rights think tank CADAL, including his participation in it.
Claims of pressure
Isa called the situation a manifestation of “transnational repression” against Uyghur activists abroad. He claims that during previous trips to Latin American countries, Chinese diplomats contacted universities and newsrooms in an attempt to cancel meetings or prevent the publication of his interviews.
The activist also said that before the current trip, his office tried to arrange a meeting with Argentina’s Foreign Ministry but received no response. According to Isa, CADAL also tried to organise such a meeting, but the ministry refused.
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Isa arrived in the Argentine capital, among other things, to receive the Graciela Fernández Meijide human rights award on behalf of imprisoned Uyghur writer Yalkun Rozi. According to the publication, Rozi is serving a 15-year prison sentence in Xinjiang for inciting the subversion of state power.
Proceedings in Argentina
Isa, the former president of the World Uyghur Congress and current head of the World Democracy and Human Rights Center, is connected to a case in Argentina. It seeks an investigation into alleged genocide and crimes against humanity in Xinjiang through the application of the principle of universal jurisdiction.
Isa claims that Chinese authorities are pursuing a policy of assimilation, persecution and mass detention of Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in the region. He said that his mother died in a camp in 2018, his younger brother was sentenced to life imprisonment, and his older brother to 20 years in prison.
Beijing rejects allegations of genocide and systematic repression in Xinjiang. Chinese authorities say their policy in the region is aimed at combating terrorism and religious extremism.
