For immediate release

June 3, 3:30 pm

Contact: Uyghur Canadian Society (647) 210 0709

JULY 3, 2009 (TORONTO) – The Uyghur Canadian Society rallied Canadians in front of the Chinese consulate in Toronto today, calling on the government of China to stop the ethnic cleansing of Uyghurs.

The protest was in reaction to the latest attack on June 29,2009 , which killed 26 and injured 118 innocent Uyghurs, according to Chinese media reports.  Some other reports said that the attack killed two Uyghurs. The excuse for the attack was an unsubstantiated rumor posted on the Internet of the rape of two ethnic Chinese girls.  Protesters maintain that this is an example of how racial profiling leads to oppression of innocent Uyghurs.

"Uyghurs have suffered for years under racial profiling and unjust government policies that have painted the entire Uyghur population as criminals and terrorists. The official media has published propaganda of Uyghurs as backward and violent, and members of the three evil forces of terrorism, separatism and extremism," said Uyghur democracy leader Rebiya Kadeer. "As a people, Uyghurs only seek prosperity and the ability to raise their families in a secure environment. The Shaoguan incident shows that official policies, together with mob rule and fear, have prevented Uyghurs from simply being able to live their lives in peace."

Racism and violence against Uyghurs is common in places where ethnic Uyghurs have been forced by the government to relocate.  Each year, the Chinese government transfers millions of Uyghurs to inland China for forced, cheap labor, replacing them with millions of Han Chinese to the Uyghur region for permanent residence on Uyghur land.

The Uyghur Canadian Society today delivered the following demands at the Chinese consulate:

• China should immediately stop forced relocation of Uyghurs for cheap and forced labor to prevent ethnic violence between Han Chinese and Uyghurs.
• China should immediately use effective legal measurement, stop racism and violence against the Uyghurs
• China should immediately stop Han migration to Xinjiang( East Turkistan)  for employment opportunity  wile Uyghurs living under the widespread unemployment and poverty.
• China should provide employment opportunity for Uyghurs in their own homeland.

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The Uyghur Canadian Society is to encourage and increase the opportunities for promoting friendship and understanding among the Uyghur people and other ethnicity or other cultural groups in Canada   provide them accurate  knowledge about political history of Uyghur people in East Turkistan, their  culture, art and music and human rights conditions, current situation of Uyghur people in East Turkistan that oppressed by the Chinese government.