Save Uyghur Campaign Remembers Ghulja Massacre

Washington, D.C. — February 4, 2025

For Immediate Release

Contact: Hena Zuberi

hena@justiceforall.org

(202) 922-5878

Justice For All’s Save Uyghur Campaign Remembers the Ghulja Massacre: A Tragic Prelude to the Uyghur Genocide

As we approach February 5, we solemnly remember the 1997 Ghulja Massacre, a brutal suppression of thousands of peaceful Uyghur demonstrators in Chinese-occupied East Turkistan. The tragedy that unfolded 28 years ago serves as a stark reminder of the Chinese regime’s ongoing crimes against humanity, which have escalated into a full-scale genocide against the Uyghur people today.

On that fateful morning, thousands of Uyghurs in Ghulja peacefully took to the streets to demand the release of young Muslims detained the night before for engaging in prayer during the holy month of Ramadan on the ‘Night of Power’ (Laylatul Qadr). Rather than addressing their legitimate grievances, Chinese occupying forces responded with unprovoked gunfire, killing at least 100 protesters. In the days that followed more than 200 Uyghurs were sentenced to death, around 4,000 Uyghurs were arrested, many of whom remain disappeared to this day. Survivors recount horrific torture methods, including Uyghur detainees being held in a building for 6 days, doused with freezing water, left in subzero conditions, leading to the deaths of at least 50.

“The Ghulja Massacre was a warning sign to the world—a sign that was ignored,” said Imam Abdul Malik Mujahid, President of Justice For All. “For decades, China has systematically crushed Uyghur identity, criminalizing faith, language, and culture. The world’s silence then paved the way for today’s Uyghur genocide. We cannot afford silence any longer.”

The Ghulja protests were a direct response to China’s tightening grip on Uyghur religious and cultural life, including the banning of meshrep gatherings—traditional Uyghur community events aimed at preserving faith and social cohesion. Soccer tournaments organized by Uyghur youth were also shut down, and sports fields were destroyed by authorities. The message was clear: any attempt by Uyghurs to maintain their identity, even in the most peaceful ways, would be met with severe repression.

“Ghulja was not an isolated event; it was the blueprint for the ongoing Uyghur genocide,” said Arslan Hidayat, Team Lead for Justice For All’s Save Uyghur Campaign. “The same tactics used in 1997—mass arrests, torture, and extrajudicial killings—are now being executed on an industrial scale in concentration camps and forced labor camps across East Turkistan.”

Today, the Chinese regime continues to justify its crimes under the false guise of counterterrorism, equating the Uyghur people’s faith and identity with “extremism.” The Ghulja Massacre was one of the first major signals to the world that China was waging a war against the Uyghur people—yet the world failed to act decisively then, just as it continues to hesitate now.

As we honor the martyrs of Ghulja, Justice For All’s Save Uyghur Campaign urges governments, human rights organizations, and individuals of conscience to break the cycle of silence and complicity. The Ghulja Massacre must be remembered not just as history but as a call to action.