Joint Protest in Amsterdam Against China’s ”Ethnic Unity Law“
July 1, 2026 marks the dark enforcement of the so-called ”Ethnic Unity Law“ by the Chinese government—a piece of legislation that serves as the legal infrastructure for an unprecedented political and cultural genocide in modern history. This law explicitly targets the non-Han nations under Chinese occupation, aiming to systematically eradicate their distinct cultures, religions, languages, and identities through forced assimilation. In response, a global day of action was launched, highlighted by a major joint demonstration at Dam Square in Amsterdam, organized by the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT) Netherlands.
Concurrently, the coalition of participating national representatives dispatched a formal joint petition to Mr. Sjoerd Sjoerdsma (@ministerBHOS), the Dutch Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, ahead of his upcoming official visit to China. The petition urgently demands that the Minister confront Chinese officials and place our grave concerns regarding this draconian forced assimilation law at the forefront of his diplomatic agenda.
Attending the rally upon a special invitation, I delivered a keynote address on behalf of the Uyghur people. In my speech, I demanded an immediate cessation of the ongoing genocide perpetrated under the guise of this assimilationist law. Furthermore, I urged the Government of the Netherlands and European nations to abandon bystander diplomacy, actively project their institutional influence, and take decisive, concrete actions against China’s crimes against humanity.
Keynote Address Transcript
”Distinguished Champions of Justice, Human Rights Defenders, and Honored Guests,
It is a profound honor to stand here today alongside our Tibetan brothers and sisters. Today, on July 1, 2026, we convene in the heart of Amsterdam to bear witness to and condemn a perilous escalation in Beijing’s totalitarian tyranny: the official entry into force of China’s so-called ‘Ethnic Unity Law.’
We must remain clear-eyed regarding the true nature of this legislation: this is not an instrument of ‘unity,’ but a legal weapon engineered for the total erasure of non-Han nations. It is a legislative mechanism designed to institutionalize, codify, and legalize forced assimilation across all occupied territories.
As a Uyghur, I declare that this law cannot be viewed in isolation from the ongoing atrocities in East Turkestan. For years, the Beijing regime has perpetrated a brutal genocide in our occupied homeland. Through state-mandated forced sterilization, mass arbitrary detention in concentration camps, and the systematic destruction of our language, culture, and religious faith, the Chinese regime actively seeks the total liquidation of the Uyghur people. This new law represents the subsequent phase of that same destructive, genocidal ambition.
Through this legal framework, the Chinese regime seeks to legitimize the annihilation of independent sovereign identities. It directly targets the unique languages, rich cultures, and historical heritages of East Turkestan, Tibet, Southern Mongolia, Guangxi, Cantonia, and Hong Kong. Beijing’s ultimate objective is to construct a ‘prison of nations,’ erasing our distinct histories to impose a singular, fabricated ‘Zhonghua national identity.’ Their aim is to engineer generations that are physically diverse but mentally and spiritually subjugated through total Sinicization.
Our unified presence here today underscores a vital truth: Beijing’s oppression is interconnected, and consequently, our resistance must be collective. We are not fragile minorities pleading for clemency; we are occupied nations resolutely reclaiming our stolen freedom and sovereignty from the Chinese occupiers!
From Dam Square, we send an unequivocal mandate to Beijing: We refuse to perish in silence! We resolutely refuse to allow our identity to be expunged by a totalitarian regime!
We further issue a stern warning to the Dutch government and the international community: Do not allow economic partnerships with China to blind you to ongoing genocide and forced assimilation. Silence in the face of tyranny constitutes complicity. We call upon the democratic world to move beyond hollow rhetoric and implement decisive, institutional measures and sanctions against this law.
To my brothers and sisters from Tibet, East Turkestan, Southern Mongolia, Guangxi, Cantonia, and Hong Kong: Our solidarity is Beijing’s greatest existential fear. They possess the weaponry, they wield the capital, but we possess the truth, and we possess an unbreakable will to survive. Together, we shall dismantle this tyranny.
Thank you for your attention. Free East Turkestan! Free Tibet! Free Guangxi! Free Cantonia! Freedom and justice for all occupied nations!
Abdurehim Gheni Uyghur
Writing date: 04-07-2026
Attachment: Other photos related to the protest
