“Sexually violating women, including stopping them from reproducing, has become a weapon for China against its Muslim population.”

 Aiman Umarova, Kazakh lawyer

The vast imbalance of power experienced by Uyghur and other Muslim women in Xinjiang leaves them acutely vulnerable to the impact of multiple intersecting forms of discrimination on the basis of their gender, their faith, their ethnicity and, for many, their class.

As the world marks the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, on 25 November 2020, The Rights Practice has produced a report to put the spotlight on the situation of Uyghur women in Xinjiang.

In compiling this report, we draw on our own work on human rights in China and information in the public domain. Our purpose is to highlight the treatment of women and our concerns at the use of sexual and gender-based violence. We urge everyone who is researching and speaking out on the human rights crisis in the XUAR to be gender sensitive in their investigations, analysis and advocacy. We also include recommendations for the international community, including civil society, UN Member States, and businesses.  

Read our report in full: Invisible Pain. Sexual and gender-based violence in Xinjiang.