Save Uyghur Welcomes House Passage of Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act

The Save Uyghur campaign of Justice For All welcomes the passage in the House of the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2020 by unanimous consent. The Senate passed the bill with unanimous consensus on May 14. The bill will now go to the desk of President Donald Trump to sign into law. The Senate had unanimously approved a previous version of the bill in September 2019, and the US House of Representatives voted 407 to 1 in favor of similar legislation in December 2019. The Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2020 includes legislation that aims to sanction Chinese government officials for their crimes against humanity and creates a mandate for reports on human rights abuses in East Turkestan.

Congratulations to all those who have been advocating for our Uyghur and other Turkic brothers and sisters. Today is a milestone in the progression of the long awaited Uyghur bill, and we thank you for your calls and continued advocacy. 

“This is a result of advocacy by people who brought their concerns to the table. Kudos to every Uyghur who advocated for their cause despite real threats to their families. We thank everyone who made calls to their representatives and senators. This is a win for the entire Uyghur, Muslim and the peace and justice community,” stated Hena Zuberi, Director of Justice For All in Washington DC. 

“The world has promised ‘never again’, which should mean ‘never again’. China is running the largest concentration camp system since the Nazis. This is another time to step forward, and we are grateful that the House has taken the first step towards this,” said Imam Malik Mujahid, President of Justice For All.

The Save Uyghur team and the Uyghur Human Rights Project (UHRP) have worked tirelessly for more than a year to push this bill forward in the hope to ensure that basic freedoms are granted to the Uyghur and other Turkic people of East Turkestan. Justice For All and UHRP held multiple advocacy days and meetings with US Representatives & Senators, and several call in campaigns.

The passing of the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act is one of the first major steps forward in addressing the human rights of Uyghur and other Turkic people. The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, introduced by Representative McGovern in the House and Senator Rubio in the Senate, is an important next step. China’s massive forced labor transfer program threatens to taint the supply chains of the U.S. and other nations whose laws forbid the importation of products made with forced labor.