The European Uyghur Institute Finally Has a building — And It Needs You

By Dilnur Rayhan

Dear friends,

We are excited to announce the upcoming opening of the European Uyghur Institute’s very own space. After five years of tireless work with the Paris City Hall, we have signed the lease and received the keys this week! Approved unanimously by the Paris City Council on March 9, 2021, following a request we submitted in 2020, we have finally acquired a 210m² space in Paris at an associative rent, thanks to the support of several elected officials, especially Deputy Mayor Jean-Luc Roméro Michel and Mayor Anne Hidalgo.

The outside view of the EUI.


What will happen in this space?
In a geopolitical context where the Uyghur nation has been undergoing an ongoing genocide by China since late 2016 — now entering a phase of erasure and normalization — this space in the heart of Paris will allow the Uyghur diaspora to gather, organize events, preserve its culture, and pass on its language to the new generation born in Paris.


The Paris Uyghur School, founded in 2017 to teach Uyghur culture and language to children of the diaspora, will finally have its own classrooms starting this fall. A brand-new project for a psychological support center for the Uyghur diaspora will also begin in this building. A small Central Asian tea room and a library filled with books in various languages about the Uyghurs and Central Asia will be open to association members. The space will be decorated in Uyghur style to give Uyghur children — who cannot return to their parents’ homeland — a tangible glimpse of their culture. Reading workshops, self-defense classes for women and children, Uyghur dance sessions, and legal aid services for women’s and immigrant rights will be organized. Finally, a music studio and web media project is underway.
How can you help?
Although the Paris City Hall has granted us this building at an associative rent, we face significant expenses for setup (especially the tea room and library), decoration, and basic operations. We need to purchase a long list of materials and items to make the space functional. Additionally, once the space is ready, we will need to hire someone to manage it. However, we are an association made up mostly of volunteers, with no income.

The view of the street where the EUI is located.


On the Hello Asso platform, we’ve published a list of needed items. We will prioritize second-hand purchases whenever possible. We need your help in various ways, within your means: if you have technical skills, you can help us with the renovation work starting in early August; otherwise, you can support us financially by donating for the purchase of items.
The IODE building is for the entire Uyghur diaspora and its allies
Once the renovations are complete, this space will be the Uyghur house in Paris. It will welcome Uyghurs and anyone interested in Uyghur culture, language, and cause. It is an associative space. To benefit from it, you simply need to become a member! The door is wide open, and we can’t wait to meet you!
To ensure this space can operate sustainably, we need your support, your help, and your contributions.

Dilnur Rayhan is President of The European Uyghur Institute, Doctor of Sociology, teaching at Sciences Po and Uyghur Studies at Inalco. Feminist. Humanist. Anticolonialist.

Uyghur Times Staff

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