for the self abolition of the proletariat @thecoleslaws
Thread of sources on Uyghurs oppression and concentration camps that cannot, by any sane person at least, be called western propaganda:
This continues to be an important piece considering it comes out of a large Marxist-Leninist party in the colonized world and challenges Marxist Leninists to actually be materialists here: text
A powerful piece by Chinese communists on Uyghur oppression including discussion of the capitalist and settler colonial economic basis of the “People’s war on terror” text
Connected to that last piece this book is helpful to understand the capitalist developmental logics of empire going back at least to the 16th century: pdf
From a historian of modern China and shared by decolonial leftists in Hong Kong analyzing the connections between the the Uyghur camps and global imperial and capitalist systems: Lausan text
Shared by Chuang this is a powerful piece by @dtbyler framing what apologists use to justify the camps as a reaction to and turning point in an ongoing colonial process using the perspectives of Uyghur, Han, and Kazakh people who were there:
- Requiem for the ‘Living Dead’: Ten years after 7-5 text
Now I will share pieces that share the chinese states own language and reports on the subject or witch complicate the narrative of who is benefiting from these camps (and talking about them) as presented by apologists.
Here is a chinese state official favorably comparing their policies to Trump’s Muslim ban: Al Jazeera:
- China’s Communist Party hardens rhetoric on Islam Al Jazeera text
Leaked data on detentions (which the Chinese state has not challenged the legitimacy of) which used “ordinary activities such as praying, attending a mosque, or even growing a long beard” as cause for detention: Dae Kang, AP News text
Although “re-education” is frequently used by apologists if you actually read what the state says about it it is chilling (also includes discussion of the “strike hard against terror” campaign of the Chinese state):
- Top China official urges ‘reform through education’ for Xinjiang prisoners Reuters text
Here is an incredibly eugenicist graph from the Chinese state tracking The birthdate in Xinjiang compared to “voluntary” IUDs
2021 Xinjiang Health Commission report chinese
Here is the chinese state celebrating the drop in birthrate in not even slightly vague eugenics:
An Analysis Report on Population Change in Xinjiang text
On the involvement of Blackwater and Erik Prince (a private military contractor closely associated with the CIA and US war on terror) in the Xinjiang camps: Reuters text
From the first link in the thread but worth specifically highlighting. Despite the recent backlash against western brands for making statements against forced labor, those brands are in fact profiting from it:
Here is an analysis of Chine State population data in Xinjiang that shows not only an incredibly stark drop in birth rate but a literal decline of minority populations along with an increase in the Han population:
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dork @arachno_commie
I hadn’t realized that the 2020 Chinese government’s statistical yearbook is out. The new data makes the case for extreme sterilization even stronger.
The birth rate in Xinjiang was 15.88% in 2017, 10.69% in 2018, and only 8.14% in 2019. This is a nearly 50% drop in two years..
…The death rate has stayed basically stable, going from 4.48% -> 4.56% -> 4.45%, so I doubt its a result of higher development as tankies claim. The natural growth in 2019 was only 3.69%, down from 11.40% in 2017. This extreme drop in births cant be explained naturally…
…The almost 50% drop in birth rates in just two years isn’t seen anywhere else in China, even Tibet which in 2017 had a higher birthrate than Xinjiang. Also, the birth rate in Xinjiang actually rose from 2016 to 2017, so this isn’t a long term trend. Something changed in 2018..
…right around when the forced sterilizations supposedly started. I’m trying to get my hands on the 2019 IUD data, but in 2018, Xinjiang had a massively disproportionate amount of IUDs placed. Many times more than anywhere else per capita.
After Iraq, Libya, etc, I’m extremely skeptical of corporate media or US government reports and allegations of China. That’s why I did my own research with the Chinese government’s official numbers. The numbers paint a pretty concerning picture.
UPDATE: I found more data from the official Chinese gov. Xinjiang’s minority population declined from 16,544,800 in 2017, to 14,977,200 in 2018, to 14,899,400. As a %, it dropped from 67.68% to 60.22% (!) to 59.05%. The Han population on the other hand increased both years.
combine the birth rate data, minority vs Han population data, and IUD data, I think what’s going on is pretty unmistakable.
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for the self abolition of the proletariat @thecoleslaws
Source for that data, very notably there was consistent population growth at a high rate until the year the camps are formed. text
This data also comes from the chinese state’s Xinjiang Statistical Yearbook’s pdf
An interview with Shohrat Zakir, chairman of the Government of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in which he mentions that they detain people only suspected of minor criminal offenses but may exempt them from punishment in favor of labor (remember for whom) text
This is one of the best critiques of the movement in which denialism circulates in the west (examples for Canada but certainly just as applicable south of the border) written by Vincent Wong of Lausan
- China, the Canadian left, and countering state capitalist apologia text
Here is an article summarizing a book about the chinese state encouraging the US to classify a Uyghur group that didn’t even really exist a terrorist organization in exchange for supporting the war on terror:
- Why Did the United States Take China’s Word on Supposed Uighur Terrorists? text
Another article published by Lausan focusing on the ways chinese policy in Xinjiang relates to, draws on, and builds on US, British, and Israeli counter insurgency strategy and technology: text
An article by a Kashmiri poet and academic living in diaspora reflecting on the similarities of Indian oppression of Kashmiris with Chinese oppression of Uyghurs. She explicitly argues against using colonial histories to justify colonial policy:
- China : Xinjiang :: India : Kashmir Nitasha Kaul text
Published by @newbloommag which published radical perspectives on Taiwan and the broader Asia pacific by @brianhioe on China’s use of the American war on terror to justify its Uyghur policy: New Bloom Mag text
Another good piece from the same author again comparing US and Chinese policy this time the similarity in terms of involuntary sterilization in ICE camps and the Chinese actions in Xinjiang text
Collection of video testimonials of Uyghurs who were detained or otherwise victimized read by volunteers: video
And the Xinjiang Victims Database @shahitbiz
has compiled a primary evidence report based on eyewitness testimony:
- Victim-Centered Primary Evidence for the Mass Incarcerations and Immense Rights Violations in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region pdf
Here is another source on Uyghur’s discussing their own oppression this time in a clubhouse group which until it was shutdown had thousands of members and was moderated by Uyghurs themselves. It’s been closed by the state but the record remains: supchina text
Feels worth adding although the focus is somewhat different. The US state has no actual interest in solidarity with Uyghurs and treats Uyghur refugees as badly as any other group of refugees (with the added surveillance all Muslims here face):
- After Uighurs Escape China, They Face the U.S. Asylum System text
According to the Palestinian center for Policy and survey research in September 2020 “83% of the public believe that Palestinians should be in solidarity with the Uighur
Muslims against the Chinese government” pdf
Here is a source that uses google earth image to track mosque destruction in Xinjiang (includes pictures). The research is by a Uyghur man who’s father was detained in the camps and hosted on a site run by a Uyghur in diaspora text
I accidentally deleted this tweet: It shows consistent increase in population until it cuts off (right around when the camps start) minority pop (which includes other groups) then shrinks in that time. This data also comes from the chinese state’s Xinjiang Statistical Yearbook’s text
By those who brought you the Panama Papers:
“A new leak of highly classified Chinese government documents reveals the operations manual for running the mass detention camps in Xinjiang and exposed the mechanics of the region’s system of mass surveillance”
- Exposed: China’s Operating Manuals for Mass Internment and Arrest by Algorithm text
Also from the @ICIJorg “China launched a propaganda blitz after media reports exposed mass detention and repression of ethnic minorities in Xinjiang, according to a new report.”
- ‘Huge uptick’ in Chinese propaganda over Uighur camps, report finds text
From a holocaust survivor comparing their experience with that of the Uyghurs (particularly in the selling of human hair of detainees) text
Another example of how US Capital is profiting off the oppression of Uyghurs, in this case note how it relates to green imperialism:
- US Solar Companies Rely On Materials From Xinjiang, Where Forced Labor Is Rampant text
Another article tying the process in Xinjiang to green imperialism, in this case as carried out by china (and following recognizable logics like Israel’s “make the dessert bloom) again by the ever wonderful @lausanhk text
A further discussion of settler colonialism in Xinjiang: wokeglobaltimes text
Another discussion of settler colonialism in Xinjiang in this case specifically analyzing the position of the settler, while relating them to state objectives:
- Transnational Carceral Capitalism in Xinjiang and Beyond text
Another article on state policy encouraging Han settlement in Xinjiang:
- China’s drive to settle new wave of migrants in restive Xinjiang text
An article relating the Camps in Xinjiang to global policing/surveillance systems and carceral capotalism:
- Transnational Carceral Capitalism in Xinjiang and Beyond text
Another article relating the oppression of Uyghurs to global capitalism: text
On the destruction of Uyghur holy sites, including one pilgramage site which has been active for over 400 years: madeinchinajournal text
Another article connecting Chinese policy in Xingjiang to the global war on terror and specifically the Re-engineering of the population to render them hyper exploitable by global capital: society and space text
More on the “Becoming Family” campaign outlined in those hand books specifically on surveillance, as well as enforcement of nationalism and party loyalty:
- Blogging Fanghuiju : State Surveillance, Propaganda Work, and Coerced Gratitude text
A tankie tried to deny this was happening because “where are the refugees?” well they are there but they are about as oppressed and persecuted as all refugees (see US specific examples earlier in the thread) here’s refugees being criminalized in Kazakhstan:
- Controversial trial in Kazakhstan sheds light on Chinese camps text
Another compilation of Uyghur testimony color coded by the nature of the abuses: woke global times text
“one of the most detailed accounts from a Uyghur prisoner in Xinjiang to date, the fashion model Merdan Ghappar… describing his detention, including instances of torture that he witnessed… shows that even well-integrated Uyghurs are being targeted”
- ‘They screamed like babies’: Uyghur prisoner describes abuse in Xinjiang text
An account of a Uyghur woman living in diaspora who was detained for two years after returning to china to sign documents. Her account is harrowing and heart breaking:
- ‘Our souls are dead’: how I survived a Chinese ‘re-education’ camp for Uighurs text
leaked report by Qiu Yuanyuan at the Xinjiang Party School operated by the Xinjiang Communist Party (which the state has since tried to erase as it contradicts their narrative) which found:
- Qiu 2017: Early Chinese research on mass internment text
Direct coverage of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region De-extremification Regulations (2017) which include naming your child after the prophet Muhammed as cause for detention (in addition to other ridiculous justifications and general arbitrariness):
- The 2017 Xinjiang De-extremification Regulations text
More translated reports including from policemen working in the concentration camps and including more discussion of religious persecution and mass arrests/disappearances: text
A compilation of 40 individual stories in which they came forward about abuse finding the pressure of these stories could be enough to force concessions from the state (another reason to give a shit) – living otherwise text
Account of torture and concentration camps by a Uyghur refugee: varsity text
Interview with a Uyghur in diaspora on being labeled a terrorist for speaking out against oppression, his mothers time in a concentration camp and his threats to his family in order to silence him: nuvoices text
An article on the expansion of the prison system which has expanded along with the camps, carrying longer sentences without any lower level of arbitrariness, notably including collective punishment:
- The Elephant in the XUAR: I. Entire families sentenced text
On the way Uyghurs cope with the psychological pressure touching on mass depression and dissociation, gallows humor, religious devotion, and what I would describe as a clear example of hyper-normalization:
- How the “Happiest Muslims in the World” are Coping with Their Happiness text
On the state intrusion into all aspects of Uyghur life including having cadre supervise weddings and significant religious and cultural ceremonies:
- How the CCP Took over the Most Sacred of Uighur Rituals text
A Uyghur poet & refugee’s story of having to deny his own religion in order to avoid repression from a form where everyone was labeled “into three categories: red for those deemed ‘dangerous,’ yellow for ‘suspicious,’ and blue for merely ‘untrustworthy.’”
- How I Escaped China’s War on Uyghurs text
Another article calling out left wing hypocrisy on this issue and importantly pointing towards the possibility of international working class solidarity with Uyghurs: text
Compared to the nationalist consumer narratives I gotta say there seems like more potential for solidarity with the critics. Just read the comments, and you will see.
“Support cotton, support hot dry noodles, support abstract goods.”
Is top tier lol. china digital times text
Here is another example of international solidarity of oppressed people in this case clips from a discussion between the author of “Black in China” and other Black and Uyghur leaders twitter
Here is an article talking about solidarity demonstrations of muslims in Bangladesh and Nepal: india blooms text
Muslims in india protesting in solidarity with Uyghurs including the presence of groups which have organized protests in response to anti-muslim violence in India: apnews text
Solidarity protest by Muslims in Kuala Lumpur: text
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John Stone @jnzst
twitter
Ten years of birth rate data shows how remarkable the situation in Xinjiang is, where the birth rate has halved in two years.
Red is Xinjiang. Black is China’s average. Every other province is blue.
In case it wasn’t obvious that Xinjiang is an extreme outlier, here’s a histogram with every 2-year change for each province. Xinjiang’s 49% drop from 2017 to 2019 is circled in red and unparalleled.
The Uyghur birth rate has probably dropped even more than 50%, because Han make up almost half of Xinjiang’s population and their birth rate likely hasn’t dropped as much.
If the XJ Han birth rate is similar to the national average, the Ughur birthrate went from roughly 20 to 7!
The source of this data is China’s official publication, China Statistical Yearbook text
The year in that URL can be changed to other years. I went through ten of these to get the data.
Here’s the data as a CSV file csv
Some have said this drop is because of changes to Xinjiang’s family planning laws in 2017. However, that didn’t change the urban 2/rural 3 child limits Uyhgurs have had for years, which were generally obeyed.
A common response to this chart from the apologists was changes to the family planning policy in 2017 caused the drop. However, for Uyghurs, the only change seems to be stricter enforcement of the existing urban 2 or rural 3 child limit.
A halving of the birthrate due to family size limits would imply half of births used to be beyond the limits. But this seemed doubtful. Xinjiang households, red, are not unusually large by Chinese standards. Black is average. 99% Han Henan and Jiangxi are green. Others are blue. twitter
—more sources—
- Uyghur Genocide, Concentration Camps, and oppression resources: thecoleslaws
text - uyghur academic reading list Magnus Fiskesjö pdf
- reading list Academic Publications University of British Columbia text
- The Xinjiang Data Project site
- Blackwater founder’s Hong Kong firm signs Xinjiang training camp deal text
- Breaking Down the Xinjiang Crisis text
black books 