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Update 05/04/2021: In recent weeks, CNN journalists found Mamutjan's daughter in Xinjiang. She spoke with them and said she didn’t see her mother very often. She said her brother wasn’t living with her, although she saw him sometimes.

She told CNN, "I don't have my mom here, and I don't have my dad here either ... I want to be reunited with them." 

Take action today to help reunite her with her mother, father and brother.

China’s campaign of repression in Xinjiang has separated Uyghur parents from their children all around the world, including in Australia.

Mamutjan is a Uyghur man living in Australia. He was studying for his doctoral degree in Malaysia before his life became a recurring nightmare.  

In 2015 his wife Muherrem and two children returned to China to renew Muherrem’s passport. They did not know that China was about to launch an unprecedented crackdown in Xinjiang that would have a horrific impact on the lives of what is estimated to be thousands of parents just like them. 

Mamutjan hasn’t seen his wife or children since. He reached out to the Department of Home Affairs but they said they could not help him as he is not a permanent resident.

The Australian government needs to help parents like Mamutjan reunite with their children, no matter their immigration status. 

To help reunite families the Australian government can fast-track applications for Uyghur children to enter Australia for family reunification. They can also ensure that Uyghurs, Kazakhs and other Turkic or Muslim ethnic groups from China are provided with urgent assistance to find and reach out to their children. 

With your voice, we can help reunite Uyghur parents abroad with their children. Take action and pressure the Australian government to help Mamutjan so he can see his children. 

Sign the Petition

  Our Petition
 
 

The Hon. Penny Wong
Minister for Foreign Affairs
Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600

Dear Minister Wong,

I am writing to express our grave concern about Uyghur parents who have been separated from their children as a result of the unprecedented crackdown on ethnic populations in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (Xinjiang) in northwestern China.

This crackdown has both prevented Uyghur parents from returning to China to take care of their children themselves and made it nearly impossible for their children to leave China to reunite with them abroad.

Amnesty International has recently spoken extensively to six parents residing in Australia and five countries who have been separated from their children. Based on their testimonies, Amnesty International has published a feature, Hearts and Lives Broken: The Nightmare of Uyghur Families Separated by Repression, highlighting the experiences of Uyghur families hungering for reunification with children trapped in China. The Chinese government should ensure that children are allowed to leave China to be reunited as promptly as possible with their parents and siblings already living abroad, if that is preferred by them.

We call on the Australian government to:

  • Work in concert with other like-minded countries to advocate for the reunion of these families.

  • Make decisions about family reunification with due regard to applicable human rights obligations, in particular under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, by dealing with applications by a child or his or her parents to enter their country for the purpose of family reunification in a positive, humane and expeditious manner.

  • Ensure that all Uyghurs, Kazakhs and others seeking sanctuary from persecution in China have prompt access to a fair and effective asylum process, legal counsel, a thorough assessment of the possible human rights violations or abuses they might face upon return and the ability to challenge any removal orders, and

  • Make efforts to ensure that all Uyghurs, Kazakhs and other members of Chinese ethnic groups resident in their countries, regardless of their immigration status, are provided with consular and other appropriate assistance to establish the whereabouts of and contact with their children, keeping in mind the special circumstances in which members of these ethnic groups find themselves presently.

Yours sincerely,

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