WUC weekly brief of October 25: European rights consultations, a Canadian forced-labour import bill, congratulations for Japan's new premier, and renewed calls against transnational repression

Full report

According to ANI on October 25, the brief first records a European rights consultation on October 21: WUC Vice President Zumretay Arkin took part in a meeting with the European External Action Service (EEAS), joined by representatives of Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the International Campaign for Tibet. Arkin said the 'genocide' against Uyghurs continues unabated, citing China's transnational repression and propaganda efforts aimed at denying atrocities, and urged European policymakers to maintain consistent scrutiny and accountability toward Beijing's human rights record. [2]

On legislation, the brief welcomed Canada's Bill C-251, a new proposal to prohibit imports of goods made with Uyghur forced labour, sponsored by MP Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay and supported by Bloc Quebecois leader Yves-Francois Blanchet. The bill seeks to close loopholes that previously allowed products tied to forced or child labour into Canada. Uyghur Rights Advocacy Project Executive Director Mehmet Tohti urged lawmakers to unite behind the legislation, calling it a test of Canada's moral commitment to global human rights. For clarity: the bill is at the 'introduced' stage; ANI did not report it as passed, and this record does not present a proposal as enacted law. [2]

On Japan, the brief says the WUC on October 22 congratulated newly elected Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, recognising her longstanding support for Uyghur human rights as Vice-Chair of Japan's Uyghur Parliamentary Group; it also praised Keiji Furuya and Arfiya Eri for their continued roles in Japanese leadership, emphasising their advocacy for justice and human dignity. On the United States, the brief relays members of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) urging President Donald Trump to raise the plight of detained Uyghurs, including Gulshan Abbas and Ekpar Asat, during his upcoming meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the APEC Summit; the WUC echoed calls for action against China's use of arbitrary detentions and exit bans. [2]

The brief also records two cultural and corporate items: the Uyghur language has been officially added to the UN Migration Handbook under Canada's M-62 initiative, which the brief calls a milestone for cultural recognition and refugee integration; and the WUC renewed its call for European companies to sever ties with Chinese surveillance giants Hikvision and Dahua, accused of aiding mass surveillance in Xinjiang. The week concluded, in the brief's telling, with the case of Uyghur activist Idris Hasan, whose release from Moroccan detention and reunion with his family in Canada symbolises global resistance against China's transnational repression. [2]

A second ANI report on the same brief covers a further set of contents: World Uyghur Democratic Movement (UZDM) President Dolkun Isa, in an interview with Polish broadcaster TVP World, discussed the worsening human rights situation in East Turkistan, his personal experiences as an activist and the consequences of his longstanding campaign for Uyghur rights, and drew attention to the difficulties faced by Uyghur refugees seeking protection overseas. Isa stated that intimidation and harassment targeting Uyghurs extend beyond China's borders, with activists remaining vulnerable even in democratic countries such as Germany, and urged European governments and other nations to strengthen protections for at-risk individuals and ensure accountability for those responsible for transnational repression. [1]

In addition, Network for Uyghur Rights (NUR) Co-Executive Directors Zubayra Shamseden and Peter Irwin published an analysis on October 21 titled 'The Global Cost of Ignoring Xinjiang', examining how continued international inaction could have consequences extending beyond the Uyghur community, covering imprisonment, surveillance, forced labour and assimilation policies alongside China's expanding industrial and strategic activities in the region. The analysis pointed to East Turkistan's importance in coal production, global solar supply chains and China's nuclear infrastructure, warned that expanding coal activities could undermine climate objectives and that forced-labour allegations raise serious questions about sourcing goods entering international markets, and expressed concern over nuclear infrastructure development at Lop Nur, citing potential environmental and security implications alongside a lack of meaningful local participation and accountability. Separately, ANI relays an article by Asiye Uyghur published on October 21, 'Salmons and Uyghur Labour: Traceable Fish, Unanswered Questions', which challenged Chinese-language reports citing rising wages, technological progress and product traceability as evidence of the salmon industry's development, in connection with forced-labour allegations in East Turkistan's expanding salmon industry. [1]

Verification note and links to this site's records: the core facts — the WUC brief's release, the October 21 EEAS meeting, the introduction of Bill C-251, the October 22 congratulations to Takaichi, and the October 21 publication of the NUR analysis — are all supported by ANI's two reports of October 25; but characterisations in the brief, such as that a 'genocide continues unabated', are the WUC's positions, which ANI reported without independent verification, so this record reports only what the parties said and did and does not adopt an advocacy group's characterisation as this site's finding. A further note: the Taklamakan aquaculture forced-labour investigation cited in the October 18 brief (already recorded on this site) and the salmon-industry forced-labour allegations cited here are different industry threads, and this record does not conflate them. This record is graded 'under ongoing verification' and will follow Bill C-251's legislative progress and the next weekly brief. [1][2]