Munich: The World Uyghur Congress (WUC) has highlighted growing international concerns over China’s expanding surveillance operations, alleged human rights abuses against Uyghurs, and efforts to suppress Uyghur identity, according to its weekly brief covering November 6–12.
In its November 6 report, A Formula for Repression: China’s Global Grid for Community Control, human rights organisation Safeguard Defenders exposed Beijing’s expanding overseas surveillance network. Citing open-source evidence from Chinese Communist Party documents, the investigation identified nearly 1,250 designated liaison points across at least 91 countries.
The report alleged that China has expanded its overseas policing infrastructure by integrating police, prosecutors, courts and United Front operatives into diaspora associations to monitor, intimidate and coerce communities abroad. The WUC highlighted these findings as evidence of growing transnational repression targeting Uyghurs and other dissidents.
According to the brief, on November 9, imprisoned Uyghur anthropologist Rahile Dawut received the Axel Springer Freedom Foundation’s Award for Courage at a ceremony in the German Bundestag. WUC Executive Committee Chair Rushan Abbas accepted the award on her behalf.
Dawut disappeared in December 2017 and was reportedly sentenced to life imprisonment in 2023 on state security charges. Her current whereabouts remain unknown, raising further concerns over Beijing’s treatment of Uyghur academics and cultural figures.
On November 10, the WUC and Members of the European Parliament organised a discussion in Brussels marking ten years of what they described as the Uyghur genocide. Speakers presented testimonies and evidence of persecution, urging stronger international action and accountability for alleged abuses by Chinese authorities.
The WUC also raised concerns over the reported death of Rahile Omer, a Uyghur woman detained at the age of 14. Human Rights Watch reported on November 11 that she had allegedly died in prison while serving a 12-year sentence. Chinese authorities reportedly attributed her death to a heart condition, but no medical documentation was provided.
Meanwhile, Uyghur communities worldwide marked East Turkistan National Day on November 12, commemorating the republics established in 1933 and 1944. In Berlin, the WUC organised discussions on transnational repression and cultural performances, bringing together nearly 100 participants.