Rushan Abbas

About Rushan Abbas

Rushan Abbas started her activism work while she was a student, participating in the pro-democracy demonstrations at Xinjiang University in 1985 and 1988. Since her arrival in the United States in 1989, Ms. Abbas has been an ardent campaigner for the human rights of the Uyghur people and has worked closely with members of Congress since the 1990s. Ms. Abbas was a co-founder of the California-based Uyghur Overseas Student and Scholars Association in 1993, the first such Uyghur association in the United States, and served as that organization’s first Vice-President. The charter co-drafted by Ms. Abbas later served as the blueprint and played an important role in the establishment of the Uyghur American Association (UAA) in 1998. Ms. Abbas was subsequently elected Vice President of UAA for two terms. When Radio Free Asia launched Uyghur service in 1998, Ms. Abbas was the first Uyghur reporter broadcasting daily to the Uyghur region.In 2017, Rushan Abbas founded Campaign for Uyghurs to advocate and promote human rights and democratic freedoms for Uyghurs, and mobilize the international community to act to stop the human rights atrocity in East Turkistan. Under her organization, Ms. Abbas introduced and led the “One Voice One Step” movement and successfully organized a demonstration on March 15th, 2018, in 14 countries and 18 cities on the same day to protest China’s detention of millions of Uyghurs in concentration camps.Ms. Abbas frequently briefs US lawmakers and officials on the human rights situation in East Turkistan. She regularly appears on media outlets to advocate for the Uyghur cause and gives public speeches in universities and thinktanks. She currently resides in Herndon, Virginia.

Experience

1. Founder and Executive Director

   Campaign For Uyghurs

   Oct 2019 — Present

   Washington DC-Baltimore Area

Education

• California State University, Fresno

  International Business

  2000 — 2002

Skills

• Turkish
• Negotiation
• Marketing Strategy
• International Relations
• Analysis
• Program Management
• Microsoft Office
• International Trade
• International Business
• Project Planning
• Leadership
• Marketing
• Proposal Writing
• Business Planning
• Chinese
• Market Research
• International Marketing
• Government
• Strategic Planning
• Research
• Business Development
• English
• Team Leadership