Munich [Germany], May 16 (ANI) — The World Uyghur Congress (WUC) welcomed unanimous resolutions passed by both chambers of the US Congress urging China to release political prisoners, a move that heightens pressure on Beijing over its treatment of Uyghurs and other detained activists.
The resolutions, approved on May 14 during US President Donald Trump’s visit to China, specifically call for the release of several high-profile detainees, including Uyghur doctor Gulshan Abbas, media entrepreneur Jimmy Lai, Pastor Jin Mingri, Pastor Gao Quanfu and Gao’s wife Pangyu. WUC said Dr. Abbas has become a symbol of China’s repression of Uyghurs; rights groups allege she was detained in retaliation for the activism of her sister, Rushan Abbas.
The Senate measure won bipartisan support and was introduced by Senators Dick Durbin and Ted Cruz. A companion resolution was unanimously adopted in the House, led by Representative Chris Smith, a long-time critic of Beijing’s Xinjiang policies. Smith previously sponsored the 2025 Uyghur Genocide Accountability and Sanctions Act, designed to expand sanctions under the Global Magnitsky framework against Chinese officials accused of rights abuses.
WUC President Turgunjan Alawdun said coordinated international action is essential to challenge Beijing’s treatment of Uyghurs. “Highlighting individual cases is crucial as it offers hope to families of victims,” he said, calling Dr. Abbas’s case “emblematic” of what the organisation characterises as an ongoing genocide.
The United States formally declared in 2021 that China’s actions against Uyghurs constituted genocide and has enacted measures such as the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act to restrict imports linked to forced labour in Xinjiang supply chains. The WUC said conditions for Uyghurs have not meaningfully improved, alleging ongoing mass detentions, forced labour transfers, destruction of religious and cultural sites, suppression of the Uyghur language and intimidation of diaspora activists abroad.
(This story is based on a syndicated feed and is published as received.)
