Kinga Gál MEP meets the Special Representative of the World Uyghur Congress

Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, also referred to as Xinjiang, is the largest Chinese administrative division. In the region, besides other ethnic minorities, the number of the Uyghur population is approximately 10 million. Thanks to the forced Chinese settlement over the last 50 years, the proportion of the community in the Region has decreased below 50 percent.

In recent years the number of cases where the human rights of Uyghurs have been infringed has been on the increase. Many people have been sentenced to prison for political reasons and many have suffered torture. Mr. Tohti provided up-to-date information for the MEP and communicated a personal message from Ms. Rebiya Kadeer, the President of the World Uyghur Congress. Ms. Kadeer`s son was detained in 2006 and has been tortured and ill-treated several times. Ms. Gál, as the member of the Human Rights Subcommittee, assured the special representative of her support.