China
2021.04.30 15:53 GMT+8

Some Australian politicians actively promote anti-China separatist organization 'East Turkistan,' says Australian Citizen Party

Updated 2021.04.30 15:53 GMT+8
CGTN

A view of the Karatokay Lake in Tekes County, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. /Xinhua

The Australian Citizen Party's journal "Australian Alert Service" published an article recently, exposing some Australian anti-China politicians' for colluding with the "East Turkistan Australia Association" (ETAA), an anti-China separatist organization.

"Some Australian politicians, including a Minister in the Morrison government, are actively promoting an anti-China separatist organization with links to Islamist extremists and associates who call for violent jihadists fighting alongside al-Qaeda and ISIS in Syria to direct their campaign against the Chinese people," the article said.

The article pointed out that the essence of ETAA is separatism, terrorism and extremism. ETAA claims Xinjiang was "illegally invaded" and "unlawfully colonized" by the Chinese government in 1949 and advocate for the restoration of the self-proclaimed "East Turkistan Republics." However, contrary to ETAA's claims that they are the "legitimate heirs of East Turkistan in exile," Xinjiang has been "populated, and controlled by, various ethnicities and powers over the last thousand years." 

There is no such thing as a strong ethnic identity, it said, adding that since 1750, that Xinjiang has been part of China, predating the colonization of Australia by Britain. 

The members of the ETAA are Chinese separatists at large, and their "ongoing separatist activism has included close association with individuals and groups that very few countries would tolerate."

Its members are fighting together with terrorist organizations, such as the "East Turkistan World National Congress," "World Uyghur Congress," and the "East Turkistan Liberation Organization." ETAA also promotes extremist ideas on its website.

The article also stated that ETAA has been increasingly active with some anti-China Australia politicians in recent years and has also actively lobbied for Australia to follow the members of the "Five Eyes Alliance" to label the Chinese government's action in Xinjiang as "genocide."

"The ETAA enjoys escalating support from several Australian parliamentarians, particularly independent South Australian Senator Rex Patrick, who headlines at ETAA protests and is leading a petition demanding Australia ban imports from Xinjiang," it said.

ETAA has close ties with terrorist and extremist forces and should be regarded as a security threat, said the article, adding that the Australian government should carefully screen the facts and should not blindly believe in ETAA and cater to some Australian anti-China politicians engaging in political confrontation against and economic decoupling with China.

"Ordinarily, Australian politicians, especially conservatives like Andrew Hastie, would never promote an organization with ETAA's extremist links; they, and ETAA, are getting a free pass because the country they are targeting is China."

"For Australian politicians to accept ETAA's claims of persecution without question, and ignore the context of those claims, which is the security implications of ETAA's links to fellow Uyghur separatists urging the ISIS and al-Qaeda-linked Turkistan Islamic Party to wage their jihad against the Chinese people — which China cannot and will not ignore — is a dangerous precedent and extreme hypocrisy," it added.

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