2025 Year in Review: CFU’s Impact and Global Advocacy for Uyghur Rights

Dear Friends and Allies,

As 2025 comes to a close, we sincerely thank you for supporting our mission to advocate for Uyghurs facing genocide. This year, Campaign for Uyghurs (CFU) reached key milestones and made a global impact. Here’s what we achieved together:

High-Level Engagements: 

Throughout 2025, CFU expanded its global advocacy by engaging directly with policymakers in the United States, Canada, the Netherlands, Germany, Türkiye, Taiwan, Thailand, Japan, Czechia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Qatar, Kenya, and Costa Rica, as well as with representatives from the United Nations (UN). CFU produced a policy brief for the Anti-Trafficking in Persons (ATIP) Global Policy Summit and, as part of the End Forced Labor in the Uyghur Region (EUFL) Coalition, provided formal inputs to strengthen forced labor regulations in multiple countries and to document China’s violations of international law.

Empowering Advocates and Grassroots: 

CFU hosted three advocacy training workshops in 2025, one online and two in-person in Japan and Germany. These workshops equipped members of the Uyghur diaspora with the skills, confidence, and networks needed to advance Uyghur human rights. As a founding member of the Uyghur Wellness Initiative, CFU continues to support the well-being of the Uyghur diaspora through public events and referrals to pro bono wellness professionals.

Raising Global Awareness: 

CFU and our Executive Director, Rushan Abbas, were featured or interviewed 325 times in 2025 for media outlets, including American Thought Leaders, China Unscripted, Mongabay, Reuters, Sapo 24 (Portugal), The New York Times, The Sankei Shimbun, and The Washington Post. These appearances educated millions worldwide about the ongoing Uyghur genocide.

This year, CFU’s advocacy reached 18 countries, and we organized or participated in 75 panels and educational events, engaging students, interfaith communities, civil society, diplomats, and policymakers while situating Uyghur atrocities within broader human rights and democratic discourse.

CFU co-hosted several high-profile events, including a parallel panel at the NGO CSW69 Forum that examined how AI is weaponized to violate Uyghur women’s rights; a side session at the 59th UNHRC exposing China’s transnational repression; the Uyghur Genocide Resistance Conference on U.S. Capitol Hill, which spotlighted the Uyghur plight and honored the resilience of the Uyghur community; and a conference in Bosnia and Herzegovina, commemorating the 30th anniversary of the Srebrenica Genocide while drawing urgent attention to the Uyghur genocide.

Most notably, the International Uyghur Women’s Dialogue in Berlin adopted the Berlin Declaration Platform for Action on Uyghur Women’s Rights, which has since been translated into 20 languages and is endorsed by more than 80 organizations and 150 individuals.

Book launch 

In June 2025, CFU’s Executive Director published her memoir Unbroken: One Uyghur’s Fight for Freedom. Since its launch, the book has become a valuable resource for international stakeholders, partners, and the Uyghur diaspora, providing an intimate, firsthand perspective on Uyghur advocacy and the history of Uyghur repression.

Recognition at the Highest Levels: 

CFU was nominated for the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize by Representatives John Moolenaar (R-MI) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), Chair and Ranking Member of the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party. We were also honored to receive the National Endowment for Democracy’s 2025 Democracy Award, recognizing CFU and Executive Director Rushan Abbas for our steadfast advocacy for Uyghur rights.

Looking Ahead to 2026

Our struggle continues. As we confront ongoing challenges, please consider making a donation to support and sustain our advocacy efforts.

Together, we can make sure that the Uyghur genocide remains at the forefront of global consciousness and continue to strengthen mechanisms for accountability and justice.

Picture of Jacob

editor-muyesser

Campaign for Uyghurs

We defend the human rights of Uyghur people and the free world by exposing and confronting the Chinese government's genocide, and empowering Uyghur women and youth in the diaspora.

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