ETGE marks 22nd anniversary, calls for independence

Washington DC [US], September 15 (ANI): The East Turkistan Government in Exile (ETGE) marked its 22nd anniversary on September 14, with its president, Dr. Mamtimin Ala, reiterating calls for the independence and sovereignty of East Turkistan.
In a statement, Dr. Ala said the ETGE was established on September 14, 2004, in Washington, D.C., when Uyghur, Kazakh and other East Turkistani leaders came together with the stated objective of restoring the region’s political voice, preserving the continuity of its statehood and reaffirming the right of the East Turkistani people to national self-determination, independence and sovereignty.
According to his statement, the ETGE was established as the political successor to the East Turkistan Republic, which he said was forcibly overthrown following the occupation of East Turkistan by the People’s Republic of China in 1949.
Dr. Ala alleged that the people of East Turkistan have faced more than seven decades of foreign occupation and what he described as colonial subjugation, massacres, mass internment, enslavement, forced assimilation and demographic changes, alongside the systematic destruction of their national, cultural, religious and political identity.
He further alleged that these policies have in recent years escalated into what he described as an ongoing campaign of genocide and crimes against humanity against Uyghurs and other Turkic peoples of East Turkistan.
At the same time, Dr. Ala said the national identity and political aspirations of the East Turkistani people had not been erased. He said that over the past 22 years, the ETGE has worked to advance the East Turkistan cause before governments, parliaments, international organisations, courts and the international public.
According to the statement, the ETGE has sought to document alleged human rights violations and present what it describes as the historical and legal basis for East Turkistan’s right to self-determination and independence.
Dr. Ala said several governments have formally recognised what they consider genocide against the Uyghurs, while parliaments have adopted resolutions condemning alleged abuses. He also referred to documentation by United Nations experts and international institutions concerning alleged violations including forced labour, mass detention, forced population transfers and family separation.
He highlighted May 2026 as another significant development, saying the ETGE submitted what it described as the first petition concerning the national question of East Turkistan to the United Nations Special Committee on Decolonization.
According to Dr. Ala, the petition raised questions concerning East Turkistan’s political status, China’s alleged occupation and colonial rule, and the right of the East Turkistani people to decolonisation, national self-determination and the restoration of independence and sovereignty.
Addressing the international community, Dr. Ala said East Turkistan should not be viewed merely as a region under Chinese administration, but as an occupied and colonised nation whose people, according to him, possess an inherent right to determine their political future.
He called on states and international institutions to support what he described as the decolonisation of East Turkistan, uphold the right of its people to self-determination and independence, and hold China accountable for alleged genocide and crimes against humanity.
Dr. Ala also urged the international community to move beyond addressing the consequences of what he described as China’s occupation and instead address its underlying causes.
Addressing East Turkistanis, he said the ETGE would continue pursuing its objectives through diplomatic and political means and other means permitted under international law. He said the organisation would continue raising the issue before governments, international institutions, legal bodies and other appropriate forums until what he described as the occupation ends and East Turkistan’s independence is restored.
Dr. Ala concluded by stating that the restoration of East Turkistan’s sovereignty was not a concession to be granted by China or another power, but what he described as an inherent right of the East Turkistani nation.
He reaffirmed that the ETGE would continue its campaign for what he described as a free, independent and sovereign East Turkistan. (ANI)