The following is a statement of Enghebatu Togochog, Director of SMHRIC, made at the International Human Rights Day rally in New York on Dec 8, 2019:

Good afternoon, Sain baintsagaanuu?

Today we Southern Mongolians, Tibetans, Uyghhurs, Hong Kongers, Taiwanese and Kazakhs are gathering here to commemorate the upcoming International Human Rights Day.

71 years ago, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. China, Kuomintang Government of Republic of China, as a member state of the United Nations, accepted and signed the Declaration.

In 1971, ironically in the midst of the Cultural Revolution and amidst the large-scale Mongolian Genocide in Southern Mongolia, the Communist China or the People’s Republic of China joined the United Nations to become a sole legal representative of China.

Later on, China signed a number of human rights conventions, treaties and other declarations including the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights in 1998, and the United Nations Declaration on Rights of Indigenous Peoples in 2007.

One of the main purposes of these human rights conventions and treaties are not only to guarantee the most basic human rights and freedoms of individuals and communities regardless of their race, nationality, region, gender and political opinion, but also to hold rogue states like China accountable for their violation of human rights.

Unfortunately, China has continually denied any obligation to these international human rights standards, and continue to violate almost all kinds of rights of Southern Mongolians, Tibetans, Uyghurs and even their own citizens.

Right to self-determination that is recognized by the International Bill of Human Rights is entirely labeled as “national separatism” or even “terrorism” in China;

Right to free speech, free press and free assembly is translated into “stirring up trouble”, “picking quarrels” or “disturbing public order” in Chinese communist vocabularies.

Today, in front of the eyes of international community, millions of Uyghurs are subjected to a large-scale genocide that is similar to what Southern Mongolian experienced 50 years ago;

Mongolian and Tibetans who tried to preserve and protect their language and unique culture are arrested and imprisoned as “national separatists”;

Mongolian pastoralists who protested China’s illegal occupation and destruction of their grazing lands are subjected to arbitrary arrest and extrajudicial detention without any legal due process;

China is the best example of how a rogue state can disregard all of United Nations human rights bills, conventions and treaties to systematically violate all kinds of rights listed in these international human rights standards.

Ladies and gentlemen, the United Nations is unlikely to wake up in the near future, because it is run by national governments many of whom have to gang up together to cover up their human rights violations. Who should we wake up is the international community and common public who love peace and freedom. People power is the only hope to these humanitarian crises that our world is facing. Hong Kong, Chile, Iraq are shining examples of people power.

Thank you!