UHRP Calls for Accountability One Year After Ürümchi Fire
For immediate release
November 23, 2023, 7:00 a.m. EST
Contact: Omer Kanat, +1 (202) 790-1795, Peter Irwin, +1 (646) 906-7722
On the one year anniversary of the Ürümchi fire, the Uyghur Human Rights Project (UHRP) calls for accountability for the deaths of dozens of Uyghurs, and for the release of those detained for participation in the “White Paper” protests that followed.
“Uyghurs were very moved to see so much sympathy for what happened following the Ürümchi fire,” said UHRP Executive Director, Omer Kanat. “The Chinese government must release all those detained during the protests and guarantee freedom of assembly.”
The fire broke out in a residential high-rise apartment building on November 24, 2022 in Ürümchi, where many were hindered from escaping as a result of strict Covid-19 lockdown measures. Obstacles to firefighters accessing the building may have also played a role in the high number of deaths and injuries.
In 2020, UHRP found that government-imposed restrictions on freedom of movement during Covid lockdowns disproportionately impacted Uyghurs.
In the days following the fire, demonstrations emerged in several cities across the country with groups expressing their frustration with severe lockdown measures brought about by the government’s “zero-Covid” policy. Some held white sheets of paper to express their discontent with the government’s lockdowns and denounced the Chinese Communist Party’s authoritarian rule.
An unknown number involved in protests were detained, along with some who shared information about the protests on social media. Kamile Wayit, a 19-year-old Uyghur student, remains in detention in the Uyghur region for sharing a video online of the protests.
The deaths that resulted from the fire are deeply intertwined with broader repression faced by Uyghurs across the region. Strict control over Uyghur movement, especially during Covid-19 lockdowns, exacerbated repressive policies that amount to crimes against humanity and genocide.