Uighur activist and former political prisoner Rebiya Kadeer has an op-ed in today’s Washington Post expressing the Uighur peoples’ solidarity with Tibetans in their pursuit for freedom. East Turkestan, like Tibet, is under a military occupation by China and Uighurs live under intense oppression at the hands of China. Worse, East Turkestan has never received the same international attention as Tibet. Kadeer should be a household name for her principled leadership through nonviolence; despite her peoples’ largely anonymous struggle, Kadeer has been a great ally to Tibetans and she shows it in this piece.

Kadeer writes:

Because of our shared experience under the Chinese regime, Uighurs stand in solidarity with the Tibetan people and support their legitimate aspirations for genuine autonomy. The Chinese government’s fierce repression of religious expression, its intolerance for any expression of discontent, its discriminatory economic policies and its support for the movement of migrants have linked Tibet and East Turkestan and have led to the tremendous social tensions in both regions. To Beijing, any Tibetan or Uighur who is unhappy with China’s harsh rule is a “separatist.” Uighurs are also labeled “terrorists.”
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The Olympic torch arrived in Beijing yesterday, and at the end of June it will be carried through Tibet, to the top of Mount Everest and through the streets of Lhasa. From there the flame will be carried to the cities of East Turkestan, including Kashgar, a center of traditional Uighur culture, and Urumqi, the regional capital. China calls the torch relay a “journey of harmony,” hoping the unifying spirit of the Olympics will disguise the reality of its brutal rule.

But true harmony can never be achieved as long as the Communist Party enforces policies of cultural assimilation and political persecution in Tibet and East Turkestan. If China wishes to become a responsible member of the international community, its government must engage in a meaningful dialogue that addresses the sources of discontent in Tibet and East Turkestan.

Read her whole piece, which includes some basic background on China’s oppression in East Turkestan and the Uighur struggle for independence from Chinese rule.