Uyghur body hails US decision to drop ETIM from ‘terror’ list

Washington : A pro-Uyghurs organisation has hailed the US administration’s decision of removing East Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM) from the terror list, which Beijing used for years to justify the genocide of Uyghurs in China.
“ Campaign For Uyghurs is delighted by the news of the important step by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to revoke the designation of the East Turkistan Islamic Movement ,” the Washington-based rights group said in a release, adding that China falsely linked people of the community to ETIM when they expressed their ethnic identity and religious beliefs.
The US administration, in 2004, blacklisted ETIM- a move used by China to justify attacks on Uyghurs and Turkic-speaking people in its Xinjiang province.
Though ETIM did not figure in the Foreign Terrorist Organisation list, it was included in the US Terrorism Exclusion List, affecting the entry of people into the country.
“ As the leadership of the Chinese regime has changed to a softer tone as it tries to suck up to what it views as the sure next U.S. administration, it is absolutely clear that despite any domestic political changes, the United States must continue with resolve on the same path to hold the Chinese regime accountable ,” Campaign for Uyghurs (CFU) added in their statement.
For several years now, China has tried to control Xinjiang with a strong iron fist against the native Uyghurs. Beijing was quick to react over the delisting of ETIM as a terror group. It expressed “ strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition to the US decision “, urging the US to “stop backpedalling on international counterterrorism cooperation.”