December 5, 2019

On December 3, the House passed H.R. 649, the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act, a bill which would mandate several federal agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), State Department, the U.S. Agency for Global Media, and the U.S. Intelligence Community, to report on China’s treatment of the Uyghur Muslims. These reports would focus on the security threats caused by the “reported crackdown on the Uyghur population,” the horrific details of which we are only scratching the surface. The reports would also focus on the “reach of U.S. media into Xinjiang,” the FBI efforts “to protect ethnic Uyghurs and Chinese nationals in the United States,” and the “scope of the reported crackdown,” among other things. 

We have called on these federal agencies to enact a more active interest in the Chinese treatment of the Uyghur population for over a decade. We will continue to provide updates on this bill as it moves through Congress. In the meantime, we are asking you to reach out to your Senator and ask them to support H.R. 649 as it makes its way back to the Senate.