dogu-turkistan-sempozyumu

FREEEAST TURKISTAN SYMPOSIUMin the international arena, because of the human rights violations in the country,the Chinese government has taken some half-hearted measures. For example, thegovernment has promoted academic research and discussion on the concept ofhuman rights in a limited manner since 1991. In 1993, the government establishedthe “Human Rights Research Association of China” as a “NGO”. The activities ofthe association mostly focused on correcting China’s image in the internationalarena and responding to criticisms raised against China in regard to human rightsviolations.Therefore, if we take into account the oppressive and threatening policiesapplied by the Chinese government, it does not seem possible to talk about theexistence of organizational freedom in China. However, it would be useful todescribe the existing legal status in China for such organizations in order tounderstand better why the Chinese have remained silent during the situation inEast Turkistan and in response to the criticisms of international organizations.China is a country where social organizations are under the monopoly ofthe state. Establishing a NGO in China is a very strict process, starting from thetime of applying. All activities concerning civil organizations are managed bythe ministry of civil affairs. Any NGO requires a permit from the ministry ofsocial affairs to carry out activities; this is only given after a very long and detailedseries of investigations. A NGO in China cannot organize an event or activityfor East Turkistan, even if the respective event or activity is humanitarian aid.In China, a NGO can have one of three different types of structure that are incompliance with the law. An NGO can be a foundation, a social organization ora non-profit organization. Even if these organizations are not directly connectedto the Chinese government, they are constantly under the supervision and areoppressed by the state authorities and surveillance mechanisms in keeping withthe national legislation.According to the law, a NGO has to find a ministry to sponsor its registration.This is fairly difficult to do in China, because the ministries are not willing to beconnected with any controversial organizations. An organization that has beenturned down/or not registered by the ministry of civil affairs does not have theright to question this decision. Furthermore, NGOs can only be established byChinese citizens and legal entities in China. However, there are some rumoursreporting that China is undergoing a process to revise these restrictions.526