Columbia University Professor Argues That Detention, Sterilization Of Uyghurs Does Not Constitute Genocide
By Chrissy Clark
A Columbia University professor co-authored an article arguing that Uyghur Muslims in the Xinjiang province of China are not facing genocide.
Jeffrey Sachs, a professor at Columbia University, and William Schabas, a professor of law at Middlesex University in London, penned an op-ed in Project Syndicate arguing that “genocide” is an inappropriate charge against a country that is detaining a minority group against their will.
The duo also argues that China is justified in taking action against Uyghurs because the minority group is akin to terrorists who attacked the United States in September 2001.
“The US government needlessly escalated its rhetoric against China by claiming that a genocide is being mounted against the Uighur people in the Xinjiang region,” the article reads. “We must understand the context of the Chinese crackdown in Xinjiang, which had essentially the same motivation as America’s foray into the Middle East and Central Asia after the September 2001 attacks: to stop the terrorism of militant Islamic groups.”