James Cleverly’s China trip is a betrayal of the Uyghurs

Think of the genocides that have taken place in the past. Picture the hardened faces of the perpetrators you’ve seen in photographs on historical documentaries. Now imagine a British Foreign secretary standing beside these perpetrators, shaking hands with them, gushing about how much he values their relationship. It seems unthinkable. 

As a Uyghur, I don’t need to imagine this though – it happened today when James Cleverly traveled to China to stand beside the men who are attempting to destroy my people.

Cleverly will be well aware of China’s treatment of Uyghurs. Xi Jinping initiated his genocidal campaign against them as far back as 2016. The last few years have seen the largest incarceration of an ethnic group since the Holocaust. Uyghur survivors who have escaped have described torture, starvation, sterilisation, and horrific instances of gang rape in the so-called ‘re-education camps’ that are now ubiquitous in the Uyghur homeland. It is estimated that over one million Uyghurs are currently in these internment camps.