World Uyghur Congress, 22 December 2017

Two Uyghur Students Die in Chinese Custody After Voluntary Return from Egypt

The WUC is deeply saddened by reports of the deaths of 2 Uyghur students in Chinese custody after voluntarily returning from Egypt. According to Radio Free Asia, Abdusalam Mamat and Yasinjan were immediately detained by Chinese police after voluntarily returning from studying in Egypt. They reportedly had no prior medical conditions prior to their detention.

We also remain very concerned about the fate of the Uyghur students who were forcibly returned to China, especially the 20 Uyghur students who remain unaccounted for after being detained in Egypt. The Chinese government continues to pursue Uyghurs living and studying abroad and those who have returned have been subjected to severe human rights violations, enforced disappearances and death in custody.

The international community must speak up and hold China accountable or these egregious human rights abuses will continue unabated.

Over 30 Ethnic Kazakhs Detained by Chinese Police in East Turkestan

Multiple reports emerged this week of ethnic Kazakhs being detained by Chinese police in East Turkestan. At the start of the week it was reported that some 30 ethnic Kazakhs were arrested and detained for sharing electronic greeting cards celebrating independence day in neighbouring Kazakhstan. Young people in particular were targeted and the names of those detained included Ayala, Sakhalie, Haiser, Nurgul, and Dina, according to RFA sources. The arrests came during so-called ‘unity week’, an invasive propaganda event where many government officials enter homes of ethnic minority households, where they were instructed to live alongside the host families. Later is was reported that 5 more ethnic Kazakhs were arrested and detained by Chinese police in East Turkestan on charges of ‘terrorism’ and inciting ‘ethnic hatred’ by distributing videos on their phones.