'Appalled': World leaders call for action after hacked files detail Uyghur internment camps
USA TodayDec 23, 2021
Files Detailing Alleged Abuse of Uyghurs Leaked as UN Rep Visits China
story
Image copyright: AP [via The Washington Post]
The Facts
A new cache of leaked documents published on Tues. by the Washington-based Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation, as well as media outlets including the BBC and USA Today, has provided further details on the alleged abuse against ethnic Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities by China.
The source of the "Xinjiang Police Files," as they're known, claims to have hacked the documents from police computer servers, and they have reportedly been authenticated by Xinjiang-focused researcher Adrian Zenz, as well as partially by the BBC. They include thousands of mug shots of detainees, security protocols that describe the use of assault rifles, and details of a shoot-to-kill policy for anyone trying to escape, among others.
The Spin
Anti-China narrative
These files paint a damning picture of the widespread abuse and injustice faced by Uyghurs at the hands of the Chinese government. Not only are they arbitrarily detained on the slimmest of pretexts, but even those who aren't imprisoned are subject to an ongoing campaign of surveillance and scrutiny. China's ultimate goal, in their own words, is to "break their roots, break their lineage, break their connections, break their origins." Western governments must do more to stop this.
Pro-China narrative
Nations with an anti-China agenda have consistently concocted misinformation about what's really happening in Xinjiang. The PRC's policies aren't about human rights or religion; they're about combating violent terrorism and radicalization. Thanks to these efforts, the region now enjoys social stability and harmony, as well economic development.
Establishment-critical narrative
Genocide accusations against China all originate from a single source: a German right-wing religious extremist, Adrian Zenz, affiliated with shady neoconservative think tanks. A careful review of Zenz's so-called evidence in the past has revealed flagrant data abuse and outright fabrications.
