By Tsering Dhundup
DHARAMSHALA, Aug 18: Tibetans and Uyghurs joined hands in a series of peaceful protests that were held at the Locarno Film Festival from August 12 to 14, demanding human rights clause in Swiss-Sino trade agreement and attention to ongoing human rights violations in Tibet and East Turkestan.
Organized under the banner “No Human Rights, No Business,” the protests aimed to urge the Swiss federal government to include human rights clauses in its ongoing negotiations to expand the Swiss-Sino trade agreement.
The protests centred around Switzerland’s free trade agreement with China, which has been in effect since 2014. Activists raised concerns that the agreement lacks provisions addressing human rights in China. The demonstrators stressed that without meaningful improvements in China’s human rights record, any expansion of the trade agreement should be halted.
During the protests, Tibetans and Uyghurs engaged in public outreach to raise awareness among Locarno residents and festival attendees. They emphasized the need for Switzerland’s foreign policy to align with human rights, democracy, and peaceful coexistence, as mandated by the Swiss Federal Constitution (Article 54, paragraph 2). The activists urged the Swiss Federal Council to adhere to this constitutional obligation in its trade negotiations with China, warning that without a human rights clause and measures against forced labour, Switzerland risks complicity in the abuses occurring in Tibet and East Turkestan.
The demonstrations were coordinated by the Swiss-Tibetan Friendship Society (GSTF) and the World Uyghur Congress (WUC), with support from various human rights organizations, including Gesellschaft für bedrohte Völker (GfbV) also known as The Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) is an international human rights organization that advocates for threatened ethnic and religious minorities, nationalities and indigenous communities., the Uyghur Youth Initiative, and Fondazione Diritti Umani (FDU) Milano. The protestors highlighted the cultural, religious, and linguistic oppression faced by Tibetans and Uyghurs under Chinese government policies, calling for an end to these practices.
In addition to the protests, the organizers urged the public to support a petition launched by the Swiss-Tibetan Friendship Society (GSTF) titled “A Red Line for Switzerland: No Further Development of the Free Trade Agreement with China without Human Rights.” The petition calls on the Swiss government to make human rights a non-negotiable element in its trade relations with China, advocating for the suspension of trade and investment with China until substantial progress is made in addressing human rights violations in Tibet and East Turkestan. The Locarno Film Festival, which featured a special program on diplomacy on August 12, provided a platform for these advocacy efforts.
