TO MR COLIN POWELL
From: Jack Churchward <trinley@churchward.com>
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Colin Powell
Secretary of State
U.S. Department of State
Washington, D.C. 20520
Dear Sir,
In statements in front of the US Senate on January 17, 2001, you
implied that in Tibet, the Chinese government was pursuing 'a policy
that might well destroy that society' with the influx of new Chinese
settlers.
The Uyghur American Association wishes to call your attention to the
people of the country once known as Eastern Turkestan, now
incorporated as the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of the People's
Republic of China. In 1949, after the so-called peaceful liberation
of Eastern Turkestan, the Han Chinese population made up 6.93 % of
the region. The 1990 census from the Chinese government now indicates
that this figure has risen to 38% and that does not include members
of People's Liberation Army or members of the Bingtuan (XPCC).
The massive influx of Chinese immigrants into Eastern Turkestan, the
homeland of the Uyghur people, is also a policy that is focused on
the destruction of Uyghur language, culture and traditions, just as
the policy in Tibet. What will destroy the Tibetan people will also
destroy the Uyghur people and that is the mass immigration of Chinese
settlers and the gradual assimilation into the 'Chinese
Motherland.' As representatives of the Uyghur people in
the United States, we call on your support for the people of Eastern Turkestan
as well as all the oppressed people in China. Uyghurs are a Turkic people that
have unique culture and traditions that reach back to the Uighur Empire
established in 744 CE. There were no Chinese settlements or cities in Eastern
Turkestan before 1900, in fact, the Chinese Emperor sent his daughters to the
Uighur Khans to sue for peace. We believe that the people of Eastern
Turkestan are facing the same pressures as the Tibetan people and that US policy
towards China should consider the people of Eastern Turkestan as well as the
Tibetans and Mongolians when discussed.
Thank you for your time and attention,
(signed)
Board of Directors
Uyghur-American Association
PO Box 6812
Clearwater, Florida 33755