Uighurs detained in Thailand say they face deportation and persecution in China

“We can be imprisoned, and we can even lose our lives,” the letter says. “We urgently call on all international organizations and countries concerned with human rights to intervene immediately to save us from this tragic fate before it is too late.”

The Uyghurs are a Muslim-majority Turkic nationality originating from the far western Xinjiang region of China. After decades of conflict with Beijing over discrimination and suppression of their cultural identity, the Chinese government has launched a brutal crackdown on the Uyghurs that some Western governments consider to be genocide. Hundreds of thousands of Uyghurs, perhaps a million or more, were herded into camps and prisons, and former inmates reported abuse, disease, and in some cases death.

More than 300 Uighurs fleeing China were detained in 2014 by Thai authorities near the border with Malaysia. In 2015, Thailand deported 109 detainees to China against their will, causing an international outcry. Another group of 173 Uighurs, mostly women and children, were sent to Turkey, leaving 53 Uighurs stuck in a Thai immigration detention center seeking asylum. Since then, five people have died in prison, including two children.

Of the 48 people still being held by Thai authorities, five are serving prison terms after a failed escape attempt. It is unclear whether they will face the same fate as those in immigration detention.

Lawyers and relatives describe harsh conditions in immigrant detention. They say the men are poorly fed, kept in overcrowded concrete cells with few toilets, denied hygiene items such as toothbrushes or razors, and denied contact with relatives, lawyers and international organizations. According to a February 2024 letter sent to the Thai government by UN human rights experts, the Thai government’s treatment of detainees may constitute a violation of international law.

Immigration police said they are trying to take care of the detainees as best they can.

Records and chat records obtained exclusively by the AP show that on Jan. 8, Thai immigration officials asked detained Uyghurs to sign voluntary deportation papers.

The move caused panic among detainees, as similar documents were presented to Uyghurs deported to China in 2015. The detainees refused to sign.

Three people, including a Thai lawmaker and two others with ties to Thai authorities, told the AP that there have been recent government discussions about deporting Uyghurs to China, although people have yet to see or hear of any official directive to do so. .

The two people said Thai officials pushing for the deportations are choosing to do so now because this year marks the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties between Thailand and China and because of the perception that backlash from Washington would be muted as the U.S. are preparing for the transition of the president in less than two weeks.

The people spoke on condition of anonymity to describe sensitive internal discussions. The Thai and Chinese foreign ministries did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Beijing says the Uyghurs are jihadists, but has provided no evidence. Uyghur activists and rights groups maintain that the men are innocent and have expressed concern about their possible deportation, saying they face persecution, imprisonment and possible death in China.

“There is no evidence that the 43 Uyghurs have committed any crime,” said Peter Irwin, deputy director of research and advocacy at the Uyghur Human Rights Project. “The group has a clear right not to be deported and they are acting within international law by fleeing China.”

On Saturday morning, it was quiet in the detention center where the Uighurs are held. A security guard told an AP reporter that the center was closed until Monday.

Two people with direct knowledge of the matter told the AP that all the Uyghurs detained in Thailand had filed asylum claims with the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, which the AP verified by reviewing copies of the letters. The U.N. agency confirmed receiving the applications, but the Thai government has barred it from visiting the Uyghurs until now, the people said.

UNHCR did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Relatives of the three detained Uyghurs told AP that they are worried about the safety of their loved ones.

“We are all in the same situation – constant worry and fear,” said Bilal Ablet, whose older brother is detained in Thailand. “All the world’s governments know about it, but I think they pretend they don’t see or hear anything because they’re afraid of Chinese pressure.”

Ablett added that Thai officials told his brother that no other government was willing to accept the Uyghurs, although the April 2023 letter, written by the head of Thailand’s National Human Rights Commission, was first leaked to the New York Times and published separately by the AP . there are “countries that are ready to accept these prisoners for settlement.”

Abdullah Muhammad, a Uighur living in Turkey, said his father Muhammad Ahun is one of the men detained in Thailand. Muhammad says that although his father crossed into Thailand illegally, he was not guilty of any other crime and has already paid fines and spent more than a decade in prison.

“I don’t understand what it’s for. Why?” Muhammad said. “We have nothing to do with terrorism and have not committed any terrorism.”

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Deke Kang reported from New York. Associated Press writers Jintamas Saksornchai and Haruka Nuga contributed to this report.