Activists with the World Uyghur Congress and supporters staged a protest outside Volkswagen's shareholder over the German carmaker's alleged use of Uyghur forced labor in its joint venture factory with its Chinese partner SAIC Motor Corp. in Urumqi, the capital of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Inside the meeting, one activist hurled a cake toward a company executive who was addressing shareholders. China is facing harsh international criticism for forced labor and other rights abuses of the Uyghurs, policies that the German Bundestag and other Western parliaments and governments say amount to genocide or crimes against humanity. Volkswagen denies any mistreatment of workers.
