It is shameful that Muslims remain silent in the face of Chinese persecution: Sağlam

In his weekly statement on the foreign agenda, HÜDA PAR Chairman İshak Sağlam pointed out the State terror that the Chinese government has been inflicting on Uighur Muslims for years.

He said human rights violations in East Turkestan have been documented by international organizations and criticized the failure to take a deterrent step against China.

Sağlam also reacted strongly to the genocide committed by Myanmar's government against Rohingya Muslims as well as the fascist and totalitarian approach of India's government against Muslims.

The genocide of the Muslims in Rohingya

Sağlam stated it is pleasing that the International Court of Justice to hear the case Gambia brought against Myanmar government on charges of genocide against Rohingya Muslims, and Myanmar's rulers to be called to testify and said: "Deprived of the most basic social and legal rights such as identity, education and property acquisition by Myanmar's government, Rohingya Muslims were massacred by the army and Buddhist militias in 2017 and as a consequence of this more than 740 thousand civilians forced to seek refuge in Bangladesh. The United Nations report in 2018 stated that 500 thousand Rohingyans who have not left their homeland are under heavy pressure from Myanmar's government. The 2017 persecution against the Rohingya Muslims has also been termed as ethnic cleansing and genocide by various UN agencies, ICC officials, human rights groups, and governments."

Calling for comprehensive sanctions against Myanmar's government, he said: "Bringing the case of the genocide, which was committed in front of the whole World, to the International Court of Justice is an important step, even if it is too late. For Muslims, who were deprived of basic humanitarian, social and legal rights, to be restored their fundamental rights; comprehensive sanctions should be imposed on Myanmar's government. Not only the genocide that took place in 2016-2017, but also the activities that have taken Muslims away from their fundamental rights and freedoms and which are still ongoing, need to be addressed in the International Court of Justice. We call on the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, which has so far been content with watching the genocide against Rohingya Muslims like the whole World, and the Islamic countries that have not shown the courage that Gambia has shown, to take action in order for Myanmar to be convicted by the International Court of Justice.

Fascist policies in India

Slamming India government for its fascist and repressive policies, Sağlam said: "While New Citizenship Bill gives eligibility for Indian citizenship to illegal migrants who are Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan, and who entered India on or before 31 December 2014, it does not include Muslims. The bill also stipulates that Muslims will be deported or imprisoned. Adopting a fascist and totalitarian policy, the Indian government had previously attempted to exclude nearly 2 million Muslims from the National Register of Citizens list, and then removed Kashmir's special status in order to change its demographic structure.

 "The fundamental rights of Muslims in India must be guaranteed"

"The policies of India, which is the second largest Muslim population in the world with 200 million Muslims, are fueling discrimination and increasing violence against Muslims. The government of India has made it clear that its goals are to protect Hindus and non-Muslims. Against these rhetoric and practices, Islamic countries and their international organizations should increase their pressure on India and ensure that the fundamental rights of the Muslim population in India are guaranteed," Sağlam added.

Chinese persecution in East Turkestan

He stressed that no deterrent steps have so far been taken against the Communist Chinese administration for persecution of Muslims in East Turkestan and said: "State terror practices such as assimilation, interference in family life, violation of immunity of domicile, confiscation of houses and work places, and disturbance of the right to worship, which has been implemented by the Chinese state for many years against Uyghur Muslims, continues in full swing. In classified documents which were shared with the public by a journalist recently, the Chinese President's statement saying that 'show No Mercy' was widely echoed in the World. Chinese government detains Muslims in mass detention camps, named re-education camp, aimed at changing the political thinking of detainees, their identities, and their religious beliefs. Muslims are also subjected to physical and verbal abuse by prison guards. Although violations have been documented by international organizations, no deterrent steps have been taken against China."

Emphasizing that it is shameful the world's Muslims remain silent against these violations and policies of assimilation, Sağlam concluded as follows: "The forces, emboldened by the silence of Muslims, will take their oppression further and the victimization of Muslims will increase even more. The Organization of Islamic Cooperation is obliged to take an active and deterrent role in this process of increasing persecution of Muslims. (ILKHA)