In Turkey, Uyghurs Express Fear Of Being Sent To China
Members of the Oyghur minority demonstrating in front of the Chinese consulate in Istanbul, December 30, 2020. AFP - BULENT KILIC
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2 min
In Turkey, the Minister of Foreign Affairs wanted to be reassuring on December 30, 2020: no question of returning Uyghurs to China, where several investigations have shown that the latter were imprisoned or sent to forced labor camps.
Only "terrorists" will be dismissed.
China has ratified an extradition treaty with Turkey.
If the Turkish Parliament has not yet signed anything, the 50,000 or so Uyghurs living in the country are not reassured.
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From our correspondent in Istanbul,
Cerise Sudry-Le Dû
In Istanbul, Uyghurs living in Turkey meet every day in front of the Chinese consulate to ask for news of their missing relatives.
"
Where is my father
?"
»,«
Release my aunt
».
They are about thirty, waving signs, crossed out with these words and photos of their loved ones of whom they have not heard from, sometimes for years.
Semsiye is one of them.
This young 21-year-old nursing student speaks quickly to try not to cry: “
I haven't heard from my father since May 2017. I learned that he had been imprisoned.
Then last year he was sent to a forced labor camp ...
"
This weekend, when China ratified an extradition agreement with Turkey, the Uyghur community became concerned.
"The wording of the treaty is quite hazy"
They are around 50,000 here, well accepted by the local population, who consider them as Muslim brothers who, in addition, speak Turkish.
If the head of Turkish diplomacy assured that no Uyghur would be returned to China, his words are struggling to convince Ihsan, a Uyghur journalist, who has made numerous reports on his compatriots: "
The wording of the treaty is quite hazy and allows the Chinese Communist Party to attack activists.
"
He himself writes under a false name for fear that in retaliation for his articles, the Chinese government will attack his family, back home.
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