Uyghurs and Allied Nations Commemorate East Turkistan Republic Day in Amsterdam 16-11-2025
Historic flag-raising ceremony on Dam Square draws diverse coalition of independence movements and human rights advocates
The commemoration, organized by the Support Uyghurs Foundation (Stichting Support Uyghurs), brought together a diverse coalition including Uyghurs, Tibetans, Southern Mongolians, representatives from Cantonia and Kwangsi, as well as Chinese democracy activists and dissidents. Dutch photographer RootsmanBob was also present, documenting the gathering.
A Ceremony of Remembrance and Resolve
At 1:30 PM, organizers began setting up audio equipment in the center of Dam Square, in front of the Royal Palace. A flagpole nearly ten meters tall stood at the center of the gathering space, installed specifically for the ceremonial raising of the East Turkistan flag — a blue banner bearing a white crescent and star.
Participants held various flags including the blue East Turkistan flag, the Tibetan snow mountain flag, the tricolor Cantonian kapok flag, and the blue flag of Southern Mongolia. Uyghur attendees, including children, carried banners reading "China Stop Genocide," displaying historical photographs from both East Turkistan Republic periods, testimonies documenting crimes against humanity, and messages declaring "Restoring East Turkistan's Independence is the Only Way for Uyghur Survival" and "Google Uyghurs."
Tibetan and Southern Mongolian participants held posters calling for an end to genocide in East Turkistan, Tibet, and Southern Mongolia. Other independence advocates displayed maps showing "Far Eastern nations occupied by China," while Chinese democracy activists carried orange flags emblazoned with "Democracy, Freedom, Civilization" — symbols of the universal resistance movement.
（Chairman of the Support Uyghurs Foundation (Stichting Support Uyghurs), Mr. Abdurehim Gheni）
The Flag-Raising Ceremony
At 2:00 PM, the East Turkistan national anthem "March of Redemption" echoed across the square. Abdurehim Gheni, chairman of the Support Uyghurs Foundation, served as flag-bearer, slowly raising the blue East Turkistan flag alongside the Tibetan, Southern Mongolian, and Cantonian flags as participants and passersby looked on. The moment symbolized the enduring spirit of East Turkistan's people in their pursuit of freedom and independence.
After the flag reached the top of the pole, Gheni, wearing a traditional Uyghur doppa hat, delivered his opening address. He emphasized: "Today we are commemorating our modern Independence Day. On November 12, 1933 and 1944, Uyghurs established independent East Turkestan republics in Kashgar and Ghulja, demonstrating their determination for independence and their desire for democracy." He condemned the Chinese government for building concentration camps to exterminate the entire Uyghur nation, with millions detained, tortured, murdered, and forced to deny their beliefs and culture. Gheni declared: "We are descendants of a great nation that has never been enslaved. Although we face unprecedented genocide, we have resolution of regaining our independence and we will fight for it until being fully independent. We have confidence because we are the descendants of the bravest, most righteous, most democratic nation."
（From left: Obul Kasim, Chairman of the East Turkestan Education Association in Europe; second from left: Ms. Risalat, an East Turkestan independence activist.）
Voices of the Independence Movement
Independence activist Risalat then spoke, emphasizing the historical legitimacy of Uyghur self-determination. She stated: "The Uyghur people established not one, but two independent republics in the 20th century. These republics stand as powerful evidence of our nation's ability to govern itself with dignity and strength." She emphasized that Uyghurs are an ancient nation with rich cultural identity and a vast historical homeland in Central Asia, noting: "Today, millions of Uyghurs still live on their ancestral land, with the population, resources, and cultural foundations fully sufficient to establish their own independent state. The right to self-determination must be upheld. This is not a political request, but a basic human right."
Obul Kasim, Chairman of the East Turkistan Education Association, delivered a passionate speech. He stated: "On November 12, 1933, and again on November 12, 1944, the independent Republic of East Turkistan was founded. These were historic moments in which the Uyghur people expressed their profound aspiration for freedom and independence. Thousands of people gave their lives for a free East Turkistan." He emphasized: "This day is more than a commemoration. It is a symbol of our national identity and our unwavering determination. It is the responsibility of every Uyghur to remember this day, to honor it, and to pass it on to future generations." Kasim noted: "In 1949, East Turkistan was once again occupied, and genocide began under Chinese rule, supported by the Soviet Union. Yet we do not lose hope. We refuse to surrender to oppression." He then led the crowd in repeated chants: "Freedom for East Turkistan! China, go home! China is a dictator! China is tyrannical!"
（Left: Ms. Tsering Jampa, former Europe Executive Director of the International Campaign for Tibet and current Chair of the Netherlands Tibet Support Group; right: Elbereltu Bao, human rights activist from the Southern Mongolian Congress.）
Solidarity from Tibet
Tsering Jampa, former Executive Director of International Campaign for Tibet Europe and current chair of Tibet Support Group NL — the first Tibetan to receive the Dutch Order of Orange-Nassau — delivered a powerful address. She proclaimed: "Today, on East Turkistan Republic Day, we gather in Amsterdam, united and unafraid, giving voice to a truth that Beijing cannot silence. Our two nations are bound by the same tragic reality: we are both victims of Beijing's colonial occupation, cultural destruction, and state-engineered genocide." She emphasized: "What is happening in Tibet and East Turkistan is not an 'internal issue.' It is pure colonialism supported by state violence." Tsering Jampa pointed out: "The 1933 and 1944 republics stand as historical proof that the Uyghur struggle is legitimate, rooted in the right to self-determination — a right enshrined in international law and recognized by the United Nations." She listed the common fate of Tibetans and Uyghurs under Beijing's rule: "Mass internment and forced labor, criminalization of religion, destruction of cultural and linguistic identity, forced relocation and population transfer. These are not isolated policies. They are part of a deliberate strategy — to eliminate who we are as peoples. But Beijing has failed in one crucial way: it has not broken our spirit." She called on the international community to act: "Sanction officials responsible for genocide and arbitrary detention, end complicity in forced labor supply chains, demand unfettered access for UN human rights monitors, and uphold the right to self-determination for Tibetans and Uyghurs. Silence is not neutrality; silence is complicity."
Southern Mongolian Solidarity
Elbereltu Bao, representing the Southern Mongolian Congress, emphasized the shared struggle: "Our peoples and our homelands continue to endure profound suffering: the loss of freedom, imprisonment and persecution, cultural and environmental destruction, and the erosion of religion and fundamental human rights." He stated: "Policies enforced by the Chinese Communist Party have intensified repression on a massive scale — targeting religion, culture, language, and identity, amounting to cultural genocide. Yet despite this, our peoples remain resilient in their pursuit of dignity, freedom, and self-determination."
（Left: Christian Chen Zhi; center: Wei Zhijian of the Kwangsi people; right: Xing Songlin, an anti-CCP dissident from Henan.）
Chinese Democracy Activists Speak Out
Chen Zhi, a Christian member of the China Democracy Party Overseas Committee, provided historical context, recounting the establishment and downfall of both East Turkistan Republics in 1933 and 1944. He concluded: "The history of East Turkistan tells us: even if attempts at statehood are suppressed and dreams obstructed, the memories of those who fought for freedom and dignity remain deeply rooted in the heart of the nation. November 12 is not just a date, but a symbol — the indomitable spirit of a nation that will never be buried by history."
（Cantonia independence advocate Jiang Peikun with Liu Feilong.）
Voices from Cantonia
Jiang Peikun, a Cantonian independence activist, drew parallels between Cantonian cultural suppression and the Uyghur genocide. He stated: "As a Cantonian, I gradually awakened during my growth: our language, culture, and identity are being marginalized and erased step by step by the Chinese colonial regime. Cantonese is not just a language; it is our root, our history, our soul." He noted: "While we are still crying out to protect our language and culture, Uyghurs far away in East Turkistan are being imprisoned in concentration camps, and under high-pressure rule, they have been deprived of even the right to speak out." Jiang Peikun emphasized: "Precisely because I am a Cantonian who is also oppressed by 'great unification,' I more deeply understand the pain of culture being destroyed and freedom being deprived." He called for: "Every nation has the right to preserve its own culture, and everyone has freedom of belief, speech, and lifestyle. These are basic human rights, not privileges that any regime can grant." He expressed his vision: "May there be a day when Cantonians can naturally speak Cantonese, East Turkistanis can freely speak Uyghur, and every nation can be independent and autonomous, completely free from the oppression of Chinese great unification."
Kwangsi Representative Condemns Genocide
Wei Zhijian, a member of the China Democracy Party Overseas Committee and Kwangsi independence activist, spoke passionately: "Both Kwangsi and East Turkistan are called autonomous regions, but under the CCP's authoritarian rule, we have no human rights and no freedom. The CCP exterminates Uyghur culture and language, and also exterminates our Kwangsi dialect and Nanning dialect. Our homeland is called an autonomous region in name, but is actually a colony." He particularly mentioned: "Millions of Uyghurs are locked in re-education camps, suffering torture and devastation. This includes 19 innocent family members of my good friend, today's rally organizer Abdurehim Gheni, including his father who died tragically in a concentration camp!" Wei Zhijian called on: "As the first country in the EU to recognize China's genocide against Uyghurs, I believe the Netherlands should also set an example for democratic countries around the world, stop the consistent appeasement policy of 'human rights in form, economy in reality' toward China, and defend universal values!" He finally demanded: "The Chinese government must immediately close the concentration camps, release all Uyghurs, and get out of East Turkistan!"
Henan Activist Condemns Former Official
Xing Songlin, a human rights defender from Henan, delivered one of the most pointed speeches, directly condemning Chen Quanguo, a Zhengzhou University alumnus from Henan. He stated: "My name is Xing Songlin, from Henan — precisely Chen Quanguo's hometown. I am also an alumnus of Zhengzhou University's Department of Economics, Political Economy major, a few classes below him. Today, I want to personally nail this person's crimes to history's pillar of shame!" Xing Songlin detailed Chen Quanguo's crimes: "He first tested the most vicious surveillance methods — grid management, convenience police stations, household joint guarantee systems — in Lhasa, then moved them wholesale to Urumqi, Kashgar, and Hotan. He built hundreds of concentration camps, locked up millions of Uyghurs, forced sterilization, forced labor, forced abandonment of faith. Children were snatched away, elderly were tortured, women were collectively violated, men were beaten to death." He noted: "These bloody orders are now known to the whole world — because the 'Xinjiang Files' have been leaked, and even his signature is crystal clear!" Xing Songlin solemnly called: "The international community must immediately expand sanctions! Not only must executioner Chen Quanguo be sanctioned, but more importantly, the supreme decision-maker behind him — Xi Jinping!" He finally declared: "East Turkistan's independence is just! I, Xing Songlin, a person from Henan, a human rights defender, stand completely with you today! Until the flag of East Turkistan flies freely by the Ili River, in Kashgar, at the foot of Tianshan!"
（Left: Sui Xiaobo, Huxiang independence activist; center: Jiang Hong, Manchurian independence activist and dissident from Heilongjiang; right: Yu Yang, dissident from Anhui.）
Additional Voices of Solidarity
Liu Feilong, another Cantonian independence activist, delivered remarks in Dutch: "My name is Feilong, a good friend of Abdurehim Gheni. China has occupied my homeland Cantonia and exterminated our language and culture. I too have been forced to flee to the Netherlands; like Abdurehim Gheni, I cannot contact my family — they all live in Cantonia under Chinese occupation." He emphasized: "China is our common enemy! The Communist Party of China is our common enemy! Xi Jinping is our enemy! The people of Cantonia and the Uyghurs are not enemies. We should be allies — comrades in the fight against the invader China!"
Sui Xiaobo, a member of the China Democracy Party Overseas Committee and Hunan independence activist, provided detailed historical context about the two East Turkistan Republics, particularly focusing on the mysterious 1949 plane crash that killed Ehmetjan Qasimi and other leaders. He described current conditions: "Uyghur people live under impenetrable surveillance. Streets are filled with cameras, police posts every few hundred meters. Countless Uyghurs are forcibly detained in re-education camps, forced to accept political indoctrination, required to abandon their language, faith, and culture." He called: "Commemorating the past is not for hatred, but for awakening. Freedom is not a gift, but a right; dignity is not a reward, but innate."
Jiang Hong, a dissident from Heilongjiang and Manchurian independence activist, focused on the plight of Uyghur children: "The most pitiful are the children of the Uyghur people. Five, six, seven, eight-year-old children are forced to live in boarding schools, not allowed to live with their parents, not allowed to learn Uyghur language, forced to learn Chinese. This is the Chinese government's dictatorial behavior, depriving these children of their freedom to learn and freedom of belief."
Yu Yang, an Anhui dissident, emphasized personal responsibility: "As an ordinary person from mainland China who cares about universal values, freedom, and human rights, I feel even more responsible to stand up. Because if even we are unwilling to speak, then those who are suffering oppression will be more isolated, more silent, and more powerless. Every nation has the right to maintain its own language, culture, and faith."
A Call for Unity and Justice
The event concluded at approximately 3:40 PM with repeated chants of "Free East Turkistan, Free Tibet, Free Southern Mongolia, Free Kwangsi, Free Cantonia, Free Chinese People." Organizers thanked all participants for their attendance and solidarity.
In her closing remarks, Tsering Jampa called for continued unity, urging all participants to reconvene at Dam Square on December 10 for International Human Rights Day to continue the struggle for human rights and against CCP totalitarianism.
The commemoration represented a rare convergence of independence movements and democracy activists from across the territories under Chinese control, united in their call for self-determination, cultural preservation, and fundamental human rights. As the flags of East Turkistan, Tibet, Southern Mongolia, and Cantonia flew together above Dam Square, the message was clear: despite decades of suppression, the spirit of resistance and the dream of freedom remain alive.
The Support Uyghurs Foundation organized this event in accordance with Dutch law governing peaceful assembly and freedom of expression. The gathering proceeded without incident, with Amsterdam police maintaining a discrete presence to ensure public safety.
Editor: Jiang Peikun
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