MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on the case of unjustly imprisoned Uyghurs in China, notably Ilham Tohti and Gulshan Abbas

B10‑0118/2024

Motion for a European Parliament resolution on the case of unjustly imprisoned Uyghurs in China, notably Ilham Tohti and Gulshan Abbas

(2024/2857(RSP))

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to its previous resolutions on the People’s Republic of China (PRC),

–  having regard to Rule 150 of its Rules of Procedure,

1. whereas the PRC is implementing increasingly oppressive domestic policies, repressing any form of dissent, cracking down on all civil and political freedoms and targeting religious and ethnic minorities;

2. whereas Ilham Tohti, who has worked tirelessly to foster dialogue and understanding between Uyghurs and Han Chinese, was sentenced to life in prison in September 2014 for advocating for the rights of Uyghurs and other minority groups in the PRC; whereas his family is denied any official information about his whereabouts and physical and health conditions; whereas Tohti was awarded the Sakharov Prize in 2019;

3. whereas in September 2018, local authorities in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR), forcibly disappeared Gulshan Abbas, a retired medical doctor; whereas in 2019, Abbas was reportedly sentenced to 20 years in prison on charges of "participating in a terrorist organization," "aiding terrorist activities," and "gathering a crowd to disrupt social order."; whereas reportedly her medical condition is worrying;

4. Whereas aforementioned cases demonstrate the PRC’s efforts to silence those brave enough to speak out against the government’s discriminatory practices and other human rights abuses, which include genocide and crimes against humanity in XUAR;

5. whereas since April 2017, over one million innocent Uyghurs have been arbitrarily detained in a network of internment camps, where they are forced to renounce their ethnic identity and religious beliefs and swear loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP);

6. whereas during the 39th EU-China joint Human Rights Dialogue, the EU called for the immediate release of Ilham Tohti, Gulshan Abbas, among others;

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1. Calls for the immediate and unconditional release of Ilham Tohti, Gulshan Abbas and other human rights defenders, lawyers and intellectuals who are arbitrarily detained in in Xinjiang and other parts of China;

2. Calls on the PRC authorities to allow Ilham Tohti and Gulshan Abbas unimpeded access to their families and the lawyers of their choice, to provide information on their whereabouts and health status;

3. Condemns once again the PRC’s ongoing atrocities in Xinjiang; calls on the PRC to respect and protect the human dignity and human rights of all, including persons belonging to religious, ethnic and linguistic minorities in China; urges the PRC authorities to terminate systemic repression and to close all detention camps;

4. Insists that China respects and guarantees the right to freedom of religion or belief and refrain from monitoring, harassing, detaining or otherwise intimidating leaders and members of religious groups; condemns continuous actions to restrict religious activities in China; invites businesses operating in PRC, in particular XUAR, to carry out more thorough human rights due diligence;

5. Calls on the Council to continue imposing human rights sanctions on all officials involved in human rights abuses in XUAR and elsewhere in China;

6. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Government and the National People’s Congress of the PRC;