China’s ‘Ethnic Unity’ Law is Already Harming Uyghurs

China’s recently enacted Law on Promoting Ethnic Unity and Progress, set to protect minority rights and promote cohesion, is actually inflicting harm on Uyghurs and other ethnic groups. One month after its implementation, the law is already detrimental to the Uyghur community and dissidents. International governments must swiftly address this issue to safeguard diaspora communities before it is too late.

The law dismantles the promise of regional autonomy in favor of Xi Jinping's campaign of forced assimilation, violating China's constitution itself. For Uyghurs, this is not a new phenomenon; in 2017, a Chinese official admitted to breaking Uyghurs' lineage, roots, connections, and origins. Since then, Chinese authorities have dismantled Uyghur cultural and religious life, recognizing it as genocide and crimes against humanity.

The indoctrination Uyghurs faced in internment camps now permeates daily life across Uyghur land, with government actions now embedded in national legislation. Schools, religious institutions, government levels, and families are responsible for enforcing the CCP’s definition of “ethnic unity.” The law compels children to love the CCP, switches to Mandarin in preschool, and requires religious institutions to sinicize faith.

The effects of the law are already evident; Uyghur-language signs have been removed, and Uyghurs cannot express sorrow as CCP cadres watch. Penalties for Uyghurs contacting family abroad have expanded, labeling normal family ties and cultural expression as threats to national unity. Overseas, the law permits China to target individuals for allegedly undermining ethnic unity or causing division, creating a pretext for transnational repression against Uyghurs, Tibetans, and other diaspora groups.

This pressure has already been felt in Kazakhstan, with Uyghurs and others reportedly feeling its effects. Prominent Uyghur activist Dolkun Isa was detained and deported from Morocco while attending a conference on religious freedom. The international response has been inadequate, with governments offering only statements and not taking actionable measures.

The U.N. Human Rights High Commissioner, eight special rapporteurs, the European Parliament, the European Union, Taiwan, and Australia have called for the law's repeal, but the United States has remained notably silent. Governments should issue public condemnations, demand the law's repeal, and clarify that China has no jurisdiction over lawful speech in other countries.

They should also coordinate to protect diaspora communities from the transnational repression enabled by this law. Congress in the U.S. should pass the Uyghur Policy Act of 2025 and Transnational Repression Policy Act to address this urgent issue.