| Kök Bayraq | |
| Use: | 111000 |
| Proportion: | 2:3 |
| Design: | A blue field charged with a white star and crescent slightly left-of-centre |
A number of flags have been used to represent the cultural and geographical region of East Turkestan in Central Asia, particularly by states that broke away from China during rebellions in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Nearly all the flags feature a star and crescent, a symbol of the region's Turkic and Islamic identity.
The most well-known flag is the Kök Bayraq (Uighur; Uyghur: كۆك بايراق|lit=blue flag), introduced by the government of the short-lived First East Turkestan Republic (1933–1934). It is a blue field charged with a white star and crescent slightly left-of-centre. It is identical to the flag of Turkey, albeit with a blue background instead of red. The Kök Bayraq remains a prominent symbol of the East Turkestan independence movement and the Uyghur diaspora. The Second East Turkestan Republic (1944–1946) introduced a similar star-and-crescent flag but with a green background, as well as a white flag with the Shahada written in gold. All symbols associated with the former East Turkestan republics, including the Kök Bayraq, are banned in China by the government's anti-extremism and anti-separatism laws.
| Letter | Measure | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|
| G | Width | G | |
| A | Distance between the centre of the outer crescent and the seam of the white band | G | |
| B | Diameter of the outer circle of the crescent | G | |
| C | Distance between the centres of the inner and outer circles of the crescent | G | |
| D | Diameter of the inner circle of the crescent | G | |
| E | Distance between the inner circle of the crescent and the circle around the star | G | |
| F | diameter of the circle around the star | G | |
| L | Length | G | |
| M | Width of the white hem at the hoist | G |
The breakaway state of Kashgaria (Yettishar) flew the flag of the Ottoman Empire from 1873 to 1877. A large Muslim revolt against Qing rule erupted in East Turkestan in 1862. The Kokandi military leader Yakub Beg conquered several oases in the region's west and proclaimed an emirate centered around Kashgar in 1864. Seyyid Yaqub Khan Töre, an official Kokandi envoy, made four trips to Istanbul from 1865 to 1875 to request Ottoman support for Yakub Beg. By the time of his last trip in April 1875, the Ottoman flag had already been flying over Kashgar for two years. In August 1875, the Ottoman sultan bestowed upon Yakub the title of emir and the Turkish: [[Sancak-ı Şerif]] (the sultan's holy flag), and sent military advisors and weapons to assist Yakub Beg's army. An expeditionary army sent by the Qing reconquered the area after Yakub Beg's sudden passing in 1877. Töre petitioned the Ottoman sultan to persuade the Qing emperor to withdraw his forces from Kashgaria, citing Kashgar's raising of the Ottoman flag as evidence of Ottoman sovereignty over the area. Töre's request was ignored.
The Kök Bayraq was adopted as the flag of the First East Turkestan Republic, officially the Turkic Islamic Republic of East Turkestan, upon its proclamation of independence on 12 November 1933. Pan-Turkic and pan-Islamic sentiments among the Turkic population of East Turkestan culminated in local resistance against Chinese rule and the foundation of the republic in Khotan. A government with a constitution and legislature was established, with the Kök Bayraq specifically defined in the former. The design of a blue field with a white star and crescent, nearly identical to the Turkish flag, was meant to symbolise the republic's cultural and political ties to Turkey. While the Turkish public expressed enthusiasm at the republic's founding, the Turkish foreign ministry exercised caution. The Turkish foreign minister acknowledged Turkey's "feelings for a people which speaks her language" and reasserted the right of every nation to self-determination, but immediately denied any connection to the republic. Soviet diplomatic pressure kept Turkish political influence out of Central Asia in general, and the republic collapsed with the capture of Kashgar by the Hui Muslim forces of the Ma clique on 6 February 1934.
On 7 November 1944, uprisings against Chinese rule erupted in the three northern districts of Ili, Tarbagatay, and Altay. Five days later, the Second East Turkestan Republic (officially just the East Turkestan Republic or ETR) was proclaimed in Ghulja (Yining). The new state was covertly supported by the Soviet Union, but its leadership was dominated by religious conservatives who saw it as a restoration of the First East Turkestan Republic. A green flag charged with a star and crescent was adopted as the national flag of the ETR, with the green symbolising Islam.[1]
Seypidin Azizi, a member of the ETR government who would later become the first chairman of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, described an additional flag in his biographical work The Eagle of Tengri Tagh – The Life of Abdulkerim Abbas. In it, he describes a meeting he had with other Uyghur political leaders the day after the ETR's founding. He was the first to speak, expressing his confusion at the sudden turn of events in Ghulja: "Early this morning, many flags appeared on the street. One was a green field with a white star and crescent, and the other was a white field with 'There is no god but God; Muhammad is the messenger of God', written with gold powder. What is going on?" The exact design and dimensions of the flag are not described by Azizi in his work.
The Kök Bayraq is frequently used by supporters of the East Turkestan independence movement, Uyghur nationalists, and Turkic diaspora communities to represent East Turkestan or the Uyghur people in particular. The East Turkestan Government in Exile claims the Kök Bayraq as its national flag in its constitution. The flag has also been flown at numerous anti-Chinese government protests, including demonstrations held in Istanbul, Washington D.C., New York City, Hong Kong, and Taipei.[2] On 22 December 2019, Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters held a rally in solidarity with East Turkestan independence supporters, amid wider anti-government protests. Many demonstrators waved the Kök Bayraq or wore face masks with the flag on it.
During the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, Turkish ski jumper Fatih Arda İpcioğlu competed with light-blue skis featuring a star and crescent. Uyghur activists praised İpcioğlu, believing his skis deliberately depicted the Kök Bayraq. However, İpcioğlu later declined interview questions about the Kök Bayraq, insisting that his skis were meant to depict the Turkish flag and that he was merely a sportsman. The Turkish National Olympic Committee echoed İpcioğlu's statements, commenting to Reuters: "This was not a political statement. As you may know, the official Turkish flag includes a white crescent and a star on it."
The East Turkestan Government in Exile has stated that the Kök Bayraq is banned by the Chinese government. The Kök Bayraq was previously banned in Turkey during the tenure of prime minister Mesut Yılmaz.