Farewell to Radio Free Asia—Not to the Uyghur Cause

Closing Radio Free Asia’s Uyghur Service marks the end of an era, but “Bitter Winter” and others will continue to tell the truth about the Uyghur genocide.

By Shohret Hoshur

August 20, 2025

Reporting on a demonstration in front of the Chinese Embassy, Washington D.C., 2019.

Radio Free Asia Uyghur Service is shutting down, citing its inability to continue paying employees after the Trump administration cut off its funding.

It has been nearly five months since, anticipating the end of the Uyghur Service, I left Radio Free Asia (RFA) on furlough. Many friends in the Uyghur community and beyond have reached out with concern, asking what the closure of RFA means for the Uyghur cause, my colleagues, and me. Until now, I have stayed silent because the situation was uncertain. But last month, most of us at RFA submitted voluntary resignation requests after realizing that the Trump administration was unwilling to reverse its decision to close the station. Last week, those requests were approved. Today, I want to share my thoughts through “Bitter Winter.”

Leaving RFA was painful. For us, the station was more than a newsroom—it was a weapon against the Chinese state’s repression. But our consciences are clear. We used the opportunities provided by the American people to expose Beijing’s crimes, playing a central role in having China officially labeled as a perpetrator of genocide in the 21st century. That label will not disappear. One day, China will pay the price for it. When that happens, both America and the Uyghur people will see the lasting impact of our work.

The author speaking as a Radio Free Asia reporter at the New York Festival, New York, in 2013.

The closure of RFA’s Uyghur service is a sad chapter, but it is not the end of our struggle. This is not a reversal of U.S. policy toward the Uyghurs or a targeted act against our cause. It is part of a broader shift in U.S. domestic and foreign policy—an unfortunate incident, but not a defeat. The Uyghur issue still enjoys bipartisan support in Congress. The U.S. government may have reduced its media support, but I believe it will continue its humanitarian assistance in other forms.

And for me—and my colleagues—no closure can silence our voices. If what we have done so far was a service to our homeland of East Turkestan and our people, that service came not only from the tools provided by RFA, but from something more profound: the blood in our veins, the convictions in our minds, the faith in our hearts. These are weapons given to us by God, our people, teachers, and friends back home. No political storm can strip them from us. We will remain in this painful but necessary struggle as long as we breathe.

Some fear that without RFA, the world will forget the Uyghurs’ suffering. I do not share that fear. Independent outlets such as “Bitter Winter,” the “Taipei Times,” and “Global Voices” have long stood with us, reporting our truth even when the risks were high. Until now, I contributed to some of these outlets under the name “Kok Bayraq.” From this day forward, I will write under my real name.

Radio Free Asia’s Uyghur Service page.

Others have asked about our livelihoods. Survival is always the first task. Many of us left our homeland prepared for hardship. We have endured unemployment, business ups and downs, and the uncertainty of exile. But Uyghurs love life, we compete fiercely, and there is no reason to despair in America, the land of opportunity. I have already returned to my previous work in real estate, renting homes. My next piece might be titled “Business During Furlough” or “Happy Days on Unpaid Leave.”

The closure of RFA’s Uyghur Service is not the closure of our cause. Our mission to expose China’s genocide against the Uyghurs will continue, in different ways and on various platforms, until the day our homeland—East Turkestan—is free. That commitment will endure until our last breath.

Source: bitterwinter.org