URAP Bi-Weekly Newsletter April 16-30, 2023
URAP Bi-Weekly Newsletter April 16-30, 2023
News: URAP team continued its advocacy and awareness-raising campaigning in Ottawa and beyond in multifaceted areas of engagement such as the implementation and the follow-up on the M-62 Motion (the resettlement of ten thousand Uyghur and other Turkic Muslims), Uyghur Forced Slave-labour tainted supply chain (Bills S-204, S-211/243, C-262), FIRA (Foreign Influence Registration Act). The “Clean University” initiative as well as the participation in multiple public and private engagements with the diplomatic missions, policy makers and legislators in Ottawa. Continued its public outreach and media presence. Below are some but not all an important highlight:
LaPresse quoted Kayum Masimov, URAP’s Project Manager “Notre crainte, c’est que dans 16 ans, ça va être la même chose. Est-ce qu’on va encore devoir témoigner devant le Parlement ? Est-ce que quelqu’un va nous écouter ?e https://plus.lapresse.ca/screens/b3fbd24a-1e00-4fdb-9c58-7174da6baad3|_0.html?utm_content=screen&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=microsite+share
The Globe and Mail cited “Mehmet Tohti, executive director of the Ottawa-based Uyghur Rights Advocacy Project, who is one of the lead complainants in these cases, says the process has been hampered by “unnecessary” confidentiality rules, along with a failure so far to conduct an investigation into the issues raised” https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-corporate-watchdog-human-rights-complaints/
Chinese-language media reported on protest in front of the Chinese Embassy held together with multifaith and multiethnic groups protesting the Uyghur Genocide https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AvobrVeXPmE
Addressing the inaction in Canada in regards to supply chain and importation of the Uyghur Forced Slave-labor tainted merchandise URAP’s Director Mehmet Tohti said. “There is also growing concern the U.S. cannot do it alone unless the neighbouring countries like Mexico and Canada take the necessary action.” - https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2023/04/21/is-canada-becoming-a-dumping-ground-for-goods-made-with-uyghur-forced-labour-heres-why-some-are-raising-the-alarm.html
URAP’s Policy Advisor, long-time ally of the Uyghur plight in Canada Madame Margaret McCuaig-Johnston was cited by Montreal based newspaper on cooperation between Quebec Universities and Huawei https://www.journaldemontreal.com/2023/04/25/recherches-secretes-avec-huawei
Organization Activities:
URAP’s Legal Counsel Sarah Teich and its Director Mehmet Tohti highlighted on several occasions the current deficiencies in tackling the importation of the Uyghur Slave Labor products by CBSA (Canadian Border Services Agency) to US-based stakeholders (The Coalition to End the Uyghur Forced Slave Labor). URAP is actively engaged with the US counterparts in enforcing the CUSMA agreements and raising alarm with the relevant stakeholders. On URAP’s advice on the lack of action by the Canadian Customs agency Madame Anasuya Syam, the director of human rights and trade policy at the Human Trafficking Legal Center, mentioned loopholes in the bilateral trade between two states and who later was quoted by the Radio Free Asia saying “Canada has detained one shipment which was subsequently released after a successful appeal by the importer. Mexico, on the other hand, did announce its import ban on Feb. 23 and will begin implementing it in May. So, the time is ripe for the three countries to convene the trade ministers to ensure that we are aligned.” https://www.rfa.org/english/news/uyghur/uyghur-labor-shein-04182023134725.html
URAP prepared Memorandum to this effect was quoted before the US senate emphasising the non-compliance of the CBSA in preventing the importation of the Uyghur Slave Force Labor. On the other hand, acting on information obtained from US partners, URAP was able to compile data on transnational border crossing of merchandise tainted by Slave force labor and use it in the ongoing CBSA lawsuit.
These statements’ sentiments were echoed by the Wall Street Journal https://www.wsj.com/articles/lawmakers-look-for-tough-implementation-of-forced-labor-law-targeting-china-9e9b3e0e “CECC members highlighted ways forced labor-tainted goods can enter the U.S., despite calls for increased compliance from businesses. One is by moving Xinjiang-linked goods through a third country to cloud their origin, a practice the Biden administration has said it would address.”
In the second half of the month of April, URAP team members had several meetings with the high-level government officials like with the Minister for Foreign Affairs Madame Melanie Joly, the Minister of Immigration MP Sean Fraser, the Minister of Transportation MP Omar Alghabra. MPs who sponsored the creation of the Alliance (below), the Deputy Ministers of the Immigration and Foreign Affairs (on cooperation topics around the implementation of the M-62 Motion), Ambassador of Hungary to Canada, journalists and other NGO activists.
URAP is a proud co-founder of the Alliance of Genocide Victim Communities (AGVC) comprising of, presently, the Uyghur, Tibetan, Rwandan, Tigrayan and Tamil communities. The mission of our NGO is dedicated to preventing and ending genocide through a multifaceted approach that includes awareness raising, advocacy, justice and accountability, education, and evidence collection and documentation. We envision a world where genocide is no longer a threat, and where all people can live in peace, dignity, and freedom. For more information, please consult https://www.agvcommunity.org/