When It Comes to the Uyghur Genocide, the World Cannot Be a Bystander

July 17, 2020 | The Geopolitics | By Omer Kanat

We have all seen the videos. A person collapses in the street, a car hits a pedestrian, or someone assaults an innocent passerby. Then to our disbelief, everyone in the vicinity carries on with their day as if nothing had happened. When we are watching the images, we ask how it is possible that people will not intervene or help.

The bystander effect has been in full force when it comes to the Chinese state’s repression of the Uyghur people. For the past three years, only a small number of governments have taken any notice at all.

Most countries have been silent until now because of China’s political power, generous loans and investment, and strong-arm diplomacy. Some governments even justify inaction by claiming there is no evidence of harm to Uyghurs, and more than 50 of them praised China’s policies last October.

Read the full op-ed here: The Geopolitics