Human rights action in front of Siemens headquarters in Munich

Today, the Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) held a human rights rally in front of the Siemens headquarters in Munich – co-organized by the World Uyghur Congress. The two human rights organizations called on the company to stop its cooperation with the Chinese "China Electronics Technology Group" (CETG). CETG operates special surveillance software that is used to monitor the Uyghur, Kazakh, and Kyrgyz Muslims in the western Chinese province of Xinjiang (East Turkestan).

"We know that brainwashing and torture are commonplace in the camps," stated Hanno Schedler, one of the STP's experts on genocide prevention and the Responsibility to Protect. "The many reports on forced sterilization and forced labor are very well documented. A German DAX company must not ignore this and must not support these practices. Siemens should withdraw from the region completely – and stop its cooperation with CETG and other profiteers of oppression!"

Delius emphasized that the Chinese government has apparently set itself the goal of eradicating the cultural and religious identity of the Muslim nationalities in the Xinjiang region. "In addition, it is now trying to reduce the number of new births among Uyghur women through forced sterilization," Schedler said. "Also, little children are separated from their families and sent to boarding schools – as a means to keep them away from the Uyghur language and culture from a very young age.

Apart from that, a comprehensive system of forced labor has been established in and around the internment camps. Meanwhile, according to reports published in connection with the campaign "End Uyghur Forced Labor", about 20 percent of all pieces of clothing sold worldwide are produced entirely or partially in Uyghur forced labor.