3 Uyghur groups receive prize from Elie Wiesel Foundation

Three Uyghur groups have received grants from the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity for raising awareness about China’s actions against their community.

The grants, totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars, were awarded to organizations working for Uyghur rights, education and the preservation of Uighur culture.

Two of the groups, the Germany-based World Uyghur Congress and the U.S.-based Uyghur Human Rights Project, plan to host a conference in New York.

They will discuss the global response to the persecution of Uyghurs.

The third group, Ana Care and Education, based in Virginia, focuses on preserving the language, history and culture of the Uyghur diaspora.

The grant, established in 2022, will support organizations that align with the values of Elie Wiesel, a writer, educator, activist and Holocaust survivor.

The foundation was established by Elie Wiesel and his wife Marion after he received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1986.

Elisha Wiesel, Elie Wiesel’s son and chairman of the foundation, stressed the importance of using the grants to shed light on the genocide of the Uighurs.

He said that it is currently the largest genocide, to which little attention is paid.

“The largest genocide on the planet is [that of the] Uyghur minority,” he added. 

“Right now, the Chinese government is trying to end their Muslim practices, trying to assimilate their faith, and as is in many ways trying to end their identity as a people, including the use of detainment camps.”

“We feel it is the cause that is the most severe on the planet, and yet not many people are speaking about it.”

Dolkun Isa, president of the World Uyghur Congress, said the grant is important because it will help the world accept the genocide.

Sureyya Kashgary, director of Ana Care & Education, said her organization received a $50,000 grant for school-based learning for students and adults to connect them with Uighur ancestry.