Pears Foundation donates £90,000 to Uyghur campaign
The sum will bolster a campaign which is challenging China's human rights abuses of the Uyghur population.
A British Jewish philanthropic group has made a £90,000 donation to a campaign urging the end to persecution of Uyghur Muslims by China.
The Pears Foundation’s support is set to boost the initiative called ‘Stop Uyghur Genocide’, driven by members of that community in the UK.
It comes amid claims China has incarcerated more than a million of the Muslim minority in ‘re-education’ camps, where there are reports of forced labour, sterilisation and indoctrination.
Spearheading the British Jewish community’s support for the campaign, the donation, which was facilitated by Jewish human rights charity René Cassin, will go towards rolling out a national grassroots organisation and buildings campaigns.
The campaign already won two key victories, with Parliament voting to recognise the genocide in April, before committing to a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in 2022, earlier this month.
Stop Uyghur Genocide’s executive director Rahima Mahmut said: “It is hard to put into words my gratitude for this gift, and the support for my fellow Uyghurs that it represents.”
René Cassin’s executive director, Mia Hasenson-Gross said: “This gift is both a testament to Rahima’s hard work and tenacity and a practical expression of the revulsion the Jewish community feels about ethnic and religious repression so brutal and so widespread that the UK and US have labelled it ‘genocide’.”
Meanwhile, former Liberal Democrat leader Sir Vince Cable was criticised for saying persecution of Uyghur Muslims did not amount to genocide.
He said that to brand it a genocide was “hyping the language”. Lib Dem MP Alistair Carmichael criticised Cable, 78, as being “wrong”, insisting that there was “clear-cut evidence” of genocide.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
