UN Expert Urges China to Protect Rights of Imprisoned Human Rights Defenders
On 11 August, UN Special Rapporteur Mary Lawlor called on China to ensure that imprisoned human rights defenders—many serving sentences of 10 years or more—are protected from torture and ill-treatment. She urged authorities to grant detainees family and legal visits, provide adequate medical care, and hold them in officially recognised facilities with transparent information about their whereabouts.
Among those highlighted is Uyghur scholar Ilham Tohti, sentenced to life imprisonment. In a February 2025 communication, Lawlor requested detailed updates on the health, treatment, and access to counsel of seven defenders, but said China has so far provided only vague and generic replies.
U.S. State Department Report Highlights Ongoing Uyghur Genocide and Political Prisoners
2024 U.S. State Department Country Report on China confirms that genocide and crimes against humanity continue against Uyghurs and other Turkic peoples in East Turkistan. It documents mass arbitrary detention, torture, forced labour, coercive population control, cultural erasure, and transnational repression.
The report also names many Uyghur political prisoners—including Ilham Tohti, Rahile Dawut, Gulshan Abbas, Ekpar Asat, Qurban Mamut, Hushtar Isa, Erkin Tursun, and Yalqun Rozi—who remain unjustly jailed on lengthy sentences. Their cases exemplify the Chinese government’s systematic persecution of Uyghur intellectuals, cultural figures, and community leaders.
U.S. Enforcement of Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act
According to the latest data from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) website, In 2025, authorities reviewed 6,613 shipments under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA). Of these, 5,541 shipments—worth nearly $97 million—were denied entry over links to forced labor in East Turkistan. The majority of flagged goods came from the automotive and aerospace sector, accounting for 5,669 of the total shipments reviewed, followed by apparel, electronics, and other industries. The UFLPA establishes a presumption that any goods from the region are made with forced labor unless proven otherwise. You can see the full chart of shipment counts and industry exam results here.
China Pressured Bangkok Gallery to remove artwork depicting the suffering of Uyghurs, Tibetans, and Hongkongers
According to Reuters, the Bangkok Arts and Cultural Center removed or altered several artworks highlighting Beijing’s repression of Uyghurs, Tibetans, and Hong Kongers, following pressure from the Chinese Embassy. The exhibition — focused on authoritarian governments — saw the removal of a multimedia installation by a Tibetan artist and the redaction of words such as “Uyghur”, “Tibet”, and “Hong Kong,” as well as artists’ names. Organizers and artists condemned the move as yet another example of China’s efforts to silence critics abroad.