A testimony by Amsterdam’s “lonely Uyghur” protester about the relevance and beauty of November 16.
A nation that does not commemorate its national holidays is a nation whose historical traces have vanished. A country that has national holidays and national heroes worth commemorating but fails to do so is ignorant. Such a nation will be swept away from the stage of history and fade from memory.
Starting from June 23, 2018, the most striking and captivating point of my solitary protest in Amsterdam’s Dam Square—aimed at informing the world about the genocide being carried out by the Chinese government in our homeland, East Turkestan, under its occupation—and the aspect that most astonished tourists from countries around the world, was not the genocide the Chinese government is perpetrating against the Uyghurs in their ancestral homeland of East Turkestan. It was the fact that the Uyghurs’ homeland had been turned into a colonial territory by the Chinese state, deprived of its status as a sovereign nation with ownership rights, and reduced to the level of an autonomous region and a minority nationality.
Even tourists from the most remote corners of the world knew well that China had annexed Tibet as a colonial territory. Yet, many had never even heard the name of East Turkestan—its neighbor and fellow sufferer in fate—let alone the name of the “Uyghur” people who are the owners of this land.
Therefore, during my peaceful protest, the very first thing I did was show them a map of the land. When I explained that the Uyghurs’ ancestral homeland of East Turkestan had been invaded by Chinese aggressors and renamed “Xinjiang” as a colonial designation, they were stunned.
Following that, when I showed them the brief history of the Uyghurs on my “Uyghur History” poster—from the Hun Empire all the way to the last two East Turkestan Republics—they stood with their mouths agape. Some said they knew Uyghur history and that this nation had been a warrior yet cultured people since ancient times, and my heart would thrill with excitement. Such moments occurred frequently during the protests in Amsterdam.
One day, a tourist from Germany, after carefully examining all the photos on my posters—placed side by side with Uyghur history and the Uyghur genocide—came up to me and said: “Young man, I recognized you as Uyghur from afar just by seeing the doppa on your head. Fifteen years ago, I traveled to your homeland and visited cities like Ürümchi, Turpan, Ghulja, Kashgar, and Aqsu, becoming quite familiar with Uyghur culture. The Uyghurs treat foreign tourists with great respect and warm hospitality, often inviting them into their homes as guests. I have never seen a nation as hospitable as the Uyghurs anywhere in the world. I cannot describe in words my impressions of ancient Kashgar, with its open-air natural music ambiance”.
“As I learned in detail from your posters about this nation—which created Silk Road culture, spread civilization to the world, and possesses an ancient history—now becoming a victim of China’s Belt and Road policy and suffering genocide under the Chinese government, the brief history of the Uyghurs reappeared vividly before my eyes,” he said. At that moment, tears involuntarily streamed from my eyes.
He continued, “I understand your emotions right now. Never lose heart; a nation’s history, created through valor, is remembered, and its history filled with blood and tears serves as a lesson for future generations. I recall Uyghur history through their glorious deeds and feel deep sympathy for your bitter fate”.
He was familiar enough with our history. He remembered that the Orkhon Uyghur Khanate, centered in the Mongolian steppe, ruled vast territories in Central and Northern Asia, leaving behind a legacy of glorious cultural traces. The eternal stones discovered in Mongolia and the surrounding areas are proof of this.
When the Tang state was on the verge of collapse, even losing its capital, it sought help from the Uyghur Orkhon state to be saved. The Uyghur Khan, Bayanchur Khan, instead of seizing the opportunity to occupy Tang territories, sent an elite force of 5,000 troops to provide aid. In a short time, the Uyghur forces decisively defeated the rebels, saving the Tang state from destruction.
“At that time, the Uyghurs could have conquered the Tang dynasty and colonized the Chinese, but they did not. This demonstrates just how humane the Uyghurs were,” the German tourist said.
In 1949, when the Chinese Communist regime was established and entered East Turkestan, it deceived the world by saying, “We will help the Uyghurs build a socialist state and leave in five years,” only to colonize us for an extended period thereafter, and now it is carrying out genocide.
“This villainy of China must provoke strong resistance worldwide!”, the German added. “In your advocacy, you have effectively linked Uyghur history and identity with the ongoing genocide, providing tourists with vital information. I support your cause and wish for you to liberate yourselves from colonialism soon and establish your independent state.
The days when the Chinese Communist regime collapses, just like the Soviet Union’s regime did, are not far off. Your opportunity for independence will surely come—stay hopeful!” He then wrote on a white cloth: “Independence for East Turkestan! Close the concentration camps in Chinese-occupied East Turkestan!” and took a commemorative photo with me before saying goodbye.
During my solitary protests, I had many such conversations with tourists from countries around the world who understood that the Uyghur cause is a righteous one. What they told me was: “The oppression you face is not due to China’s poor human rights record alone, but because your state has fallen under Chinese colonialism. China is far more vile, greedy, and hideous than any other colonizer. Their goal is to ensure you can never rise again and ultimately annihilate you. Since you live in a free country, be free even here—be strong, turn the dream of independence into a conviction, and do not neglect cultivating national spirit in your children.” Many people told me such things.
How can we awaken our national spirit? How can we establish our idea of statehood? I have thought deeply about this. As Uyghurs—a Muslim people who believe in Islam—we are part of the Ummah, yet today the sense of Ummah has vanished among Muslims. The Chinese know this well, which is why they can brazenly attack us in front of the Muslim world.
Because of the ideology ingrained in the Chinese nation for thousands of years—“a different tongue means a different heart”—China has always viewed other nations as enemies. Today, it is exterminating these noble people.
Now, what is the value and foundation of our existence? National consciousness and a national state. Allah created us as Uyghurs and gave us East Turkestan as our land. The uniqueness of every nation is a sign from Allah, and protecting it is a requirement of faith.
The land of the Uyghurs and the ownership rights over this land belong to the Uyghurs—this consciousness is our guiding ideology. We must realize independence in our souls, in our thoughts, in our minds, and in our actions.
To achieve this, we must do whatever is in our power. First and foremost, we need to disseminate this information widely to the world; there are many methods and paths for achieving this. The most significant of these is commemorating East Turkestan Republic Day annually.
The people of East Turkestan established the East Turkestan Republic twice in succession: on November 12, 1933, in Kashgar, and on November 12, 1944, in Ghulja. These two sacred republics, built at the cost of the hot blood of thousands of our martyrs, have for years been cherished by our people as a single entity, and every November 12, our Republic Day has been commemorated abroad.
By commemorating this day, we demonstrate that the Uyghur nation aspires to freedom, possesses the capacity for self-governance, and has a high level of democratic consciousness. At the same time, we proclaim to the world the national will for freedom of the people of East Turkestan.
These two republics are symbols of our homeland, East Turkestan’s national independence. Moreover, the valuable experiences, lessons, and warrior spirit left by these two republics serve as the guiding light and spiritual nourishment for the East Turkestan independence movement that we continue today. Remembering these two republics at all times and inheriting their spirit is the national and conscientious duty of all of us.
Since I began my solitary protest in Amsterdam’s Dam Square, I have observed the activities of colonized nations commemorating their own national independence days. Inspired by their national independence day events, I regarded commemorating East Turkestan Republic Day in Amsterdam Square as my responsibility and obligation to the nation. On November 16, 2019, I held the first East Turkestan Republic Day commemoration event in Amsterdam’s Dam Square.
Around 200 Uyghurs participated in this event. The activity began with the majestic national march of East Turkestan, followed by a flag-raising ceremony where the blue flag with the crescent and star fluttered in Amsterdam’s Dam Square. Then, I explained the significance of the event in three languages and distributed it live on site. For this commemoration, I displayed more than a dozen posters on various themes reflecting China’s genocide against the Uyghurs, along with posters about the two East Turkestan Republics and Uyghur history.
The ones that drew the most attention were the posters with brief historical images of our two republics for the Republic Day event and Uyghur history. I received numerous congratulatory messages from sympathizers around the world who saw the event online. Almost all of them expressed good wishes for the Uyghurs to liberate themselves from Chinese colonialism and establish their own state—reading these messages filled my heart with joy.
I felt proud of our ancestors who created this glorious history. I prayed for their souls. After sensing the practical significance of this event, I decided to organize an East Turkestan Republic Day celebration in Amsterdam’s Dam Square every year, inheriting the spirit of our ancestors and never letting the torch they lit go out—this became my responsibility and obligation, and I have continued it. Since then, I have held East Turkmenistan Republic Day in Amsterdam’s Dam Square every year. Unfortunately, in November 2024, due to clashes between Israeli football hooligans and pro-Palestine demonstrators, activities in Dam Square were temporarily banned for a period, so I was unable to hold the East Turkestan Republic Day commemoration event and felt deeply disheartened.
Before building the state in our homeland, let us first create it in our hearts and turn it into reality through our actions. Let us commemorate the annual East Turkestan Republic Day in various forms. Let us come together to celebrate our national holiday in diverse ways all over the world! Let us declare the Uyghur will for independence to the world.
This year, I will also commemorate the East Turkestan Republic Day on November 16. So, on November 16, 2025, come to Amsterdam’s Dam Square! Let us commemorate East Turkestan Republic Day together! Let us proclaim our dream of independence to the world together! Let us realize independence—in our souls, in our ideology, in our thinking, in our activities, and in our practical actions!
Source: Bitter Winter
