‘Uyghur Tribunal’: Much ado about nothing

People dancing in front of Id Kah Mosque in Kashgar to celebrate Eid al-Fitr. Photo: Xinhua

The United Kingdom is a magical place. Sometimes in the UK, it's just so strange that things might go one way, but their names might indicate otherwise. For instance, the British Broadcasting Corporation could be broadcasting fake news; Arsenal might fail to find a gunner to shoot and score; Coldplay's concerts are often as popular as fire. And the calls for independence never cease in a "United" Kingdom. Let's face it, this is a weird place.

This is the same case for the so-called "Uyghur Tribunal," to be held on June 4, in London, where the audiences, long drenched in a kind of Shakespearean cultural richness, have become picky-eaters when it comes to dramas. In a place labeled as a "tribunal," however, what's going on in the theatrical "tribunal" is not Portia preserving justice with her sophisticated wisdom.

Instead, it's a puppet show - just a clown on a lonely string, manipulated by the evil hands in darkness, wearing an old-fashioned powdered wig, faking evidences, fabricating stories, and badmouthing about China's Xinjiang policies.

The place is lost in the mirage of money and fame, trampling the authority and dignity of law. Were Shakespeare, a former lawyer, alive today and watching this puppet show, Romeo and Julietmight never be pathetic enough to be ranked his top-notch tragedy.

The pseudo-court is by no means a legitimate legal body, and any so-called "verdict" or "ruling" it may make is indeed be like the play Much Ado About Nothing. It is actually a puppet kneeling to the geopolitical benefits of the major Western powers that are pulling the strings.

In fact, what kind of nonsense the puppet might be saying, however invalid they might be, does not matter at all, either to the people of Xinjiang or even to the string-pullers behind the curtain. What really matters is that the US and Western anti-China forces, in collusion with the notorious separatist "World Uyghur Congress (WUC)" and other "East Turkistan" organizations, have been trying to disguise the lie of the century, namely the so-called genocide in Xinjiang. It is being fanned under the cover of one of the noblest and most glorious causes of human civilization - the rule of law. This is being done to take advantage of people's trust for their own despicable interests.

Many interesting details remain to be discovered on the website of the pseudo-court. The first question is its identity. The website reveals that the "Uyghur Tribunal" will be constituted as a UK Private Company Limited by Guarantee - under the name "Uyghur Administration." This certainly makes sense, as a "tribunal" seems to be a natural match to a "private company." Afterwards, the most noticeable section in the menu, placed only after "home" and "about," is funding.

Of course, it is absolutely understandable for such a Merchant of Venicecalling itself a "tribunal" to prioritize the honorable cause of making money. Otherwise it will remain doubtful whether so-called witnesses and experts, long spoiled by Western media's generosity in buying fabricated anti-China stories, will appear at the hearings free of charge. Speaking of these purported puppet witnesses and experts, although the pseudo-court asserted that "No present or future members of the Tribunal or the Secretariat are activists in any Uyghur cause," we might still come across some familiar names in the "about" section and "hearing" list. Such as:

Dolkun Isa, the "President" of the WUC and a main leader of "East Turkistan" organization, a UN-recognized terrorist group.

As the website suggests, the "tribunal" was established at the request of Dolkun Isa in collaboration with the WUC. The WUC, the main face and voice of a separatist operation dedicated to destabilizing the Xinjiang region of China and ultimately toppling the Chinese government, is a US government-backed umbrella for several Washington-based outfits that also rely heavily on US funding and direction.

As for Dolkun Isa himself, he is a notorious terrorist and separatist involved in multiple bloody terrorist attacks in Xinjiang, including the attack that killed 197 and injured over 1,700 in Urumqi on July 5, 2009.

Adrian Zenz, a far-right anti-China propagandist who believes he is "led by God" on a "mission" against China. Zenz is a senior fellow in China studies at the far-right Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation, which was established by the US government in 1983. His "expertise" on China has been demonstrated to be deeply flawed, riddled with falsehoods and dishonest statistical manipulation. His assertion of genocide is concocted through fraudulent statistical manipulation, cherry-picking of source material, and propagandist misrepresentations.

An even more threatening fact is that many bizarre criticisms against Xinjiang are based on Zenz's gibberish, without ever checking his credibility. Consequently, Western governments and media, either consciously or unconsciously, have been circulating Mr. Zenz's awkward Comedy of Errors.

Nathan Ruser, an alleged "researcher" at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI).

ASPI, a right-wing militaristic "think tank" labeling itself "independent" is actually run by Australia's Defense Department and funded by US and Western governments, including the US State Department - who gave $450,000 in the 2019-2020 fiscal year, according to Australian Senator Kim Carr. It also received funding from UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office and NATO, mega-corporations, and a bunch of weapon manufacturers - such as Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and Thales.

The reports released by ASPI have met with inarguable criticism that it relies on speculation, sensationalism and even far-right blogs of religious fanatics.

The Australian Financial Review noted that ASPI has been accused of "fomenting anti-China hysteria, to the alleged benefit of its benefactors." Former Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr has slammed ASPI for pushing a "one-sided, pro-American view of the world." Former Australian ambassador to China Geoff Raby added that ASPI is "the architect of the China threat theory in Australia."

As such, although the so-called "witnesses" remained anonymous, it will not be hitting the lottery if some of the names have made headlines. Pathetic.

It is highly unlikely that the members of the pseudo-court and its worshippers, blinded by the fixed ideological biases, are unaware of such facts. However, these anti-China factions choose to ignore the facts for the purposes of the string-pullers that keep feeding the puppets coins and applause. This reminds me of how Shakespeare made fun of the ill-minded lawyers who were so used to calling black white:

"Why may not that be the skull of a lawyer? Where be his quiddities now, his quillets, his cases, his tenures, and his tricks?"

-- The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, Act V, Scene I

No matter how hard the puppet might want to sell its lies about Xinjiang, the truth and fact stand still, invincible and omnipotent. The distinction between truth and lies could not be even more clear.

For Xinjiang, As You Like It, the prosperity and freedom enjoyed by her people will never be stained by such bluffing. All's Well That Ends Well.

As for the puppet? Measure for Measure, eye for eye.

The author is a current affairs commentator.