Justice For All’s Save Uyghur Campaign Commemorates the 17th Anniversary of the Shaoguan Massacre

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WASHINGTON, D.C. (June 26, 2026)

On the 17th anniversary of the Shaoguan Toy Factory Massacre, Justice For All’s Save Uyghur Campaign honors the memory of the Uyghur workers who were killed  in violent attacks by Han Chinese workers at the Xuri Toy Factory in Shaoguan, Guangdong Province, on June 26, 2009.

Chinese state media reported that at least two Uyghur workers were killed and more than 100 were injured. However, the Chinese government has never fully disclosed what happened, leading many to believe the true death toll was significantly higher.

The Uyghur workers had been transferred thousands of miles from their homeland in East Turkistan through state labor transfer programs that separated them from their families. The violence at Shaoguan became a catalyst for peaceful demonstrations in Urumchi nine days later, where Uyghurs demanded justice for the victims. Chinese authorities responded with a violent crackdown that resulted in widespread arrests, disappearances and further bloodshed. These events marked a turning point in Beijing’s escalating repression of the Uyghur people, paving the way for the mass internment camps, forced labor, religious persecution and cultural destruction that followed.

Seventeen years later, the victims of Shaoguan have yet to receive justice. The Chinese government continues to suppress information surrounding the massacre and has refused to provide a full accounting of those killed, injured or held responsible.

Arslan Hidayat, Team Lead of Justice For All’s Save Uyghur Campaign, said: “The Shaoguan Massacre exposed the dangers of China’s coercive labor transfer policies and the Chinese government’s disregard for Uyghur lives. Seventeen years later, the truth remains hidden, justice has not been served, and the policies that enabled Shaoguan have expanded into a system of forced labor and genocide.”

Justice For All’s Save Uyghur Campaign calls on the Chinese government to release all information related to the Shaoguan Massacre, including the true number of victims and to allow an independent investigation into the events. We also urge governments, international organizations, and human rights advocates to continue pressing Beijing for accountability and to stand in solidarity with the Uyghur people.

Justice For All is a human rights organization accredited by the United Nations focused on Muslim minority issues and anti-genocide advocacy

Contact: Arslan Hidayat, arslan@justiceforall.org  Phone: 202-908-JUST

Website: https://www.justiceforall.org

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