Chinese Authorities Rename Xinjiang Villages to Erase Uyghur Culture and History

In Xinjiang, the Chinese authorities have changed the names of Uyghur villages and other ethnic minorities to reflect the ideology of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). According to a report released by Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Norwegian organization Uyghur Hjelp, out of 25,000 Uighur villages in Xinjiang, 3,600 had their original names changed. The authorities also removed terms in village names that denote Uyghur cultural practices.

The slogans propagated by the CCP such as “Happiness,” “Unity,” and “Harmony” were given to the villages in place of their original names that referenced Islam or Uyghur culture and history. Maya Wang, acting director for China affairs at HRW stated that these changes appear to be part of the Chinese regime’s efforts to erase the cultural and religious expressions of Uyghurs.

According to Wang, there are around 11 million Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities living in Xinjiang who are accused of being persecuted and repressed by Xi Jinping’s communist regime. The accusations include mass detentions, political indoctrination, forced labor, and family separation. More than 1 million Uighurs are estimated to have been detained in concentration camps described by authorities as “vocational training centers.”

Abduweli Ayub, founder of Uyghur Hjelp urged concerned governments and the UN human rights office to intensify their efforts to hold the Chinese government accountable for its abuses in the Uighur region. He called on Beijing to release hundreds of thousands of unjustly imprisoned Uyghurs during upcoming sessions of the UN Human Rights Council and high-level bilateral meetings.