The fate of thousands of Uighur refugees in Turkey who may be deported to China is threatening to turn into a major political blunder embarrassing Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoga, who has long vowed to defend the rights of Muslims around the globe.
Meral Aksener, a member of parliament from Turkey’s right-of-center Good Party, criticized lawmakers from Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party as she addressed parliament Wednesday (Jan. 27). She said, “They tell you that they are the biggest (defenders) of Muslims, but they fail to hear the cries of our brothers and sisters who are suffering for saying they are Turkic Muslims.”
Akseneyn invited Uighur refugee Nursiman Abdurasid to speak when Turkish state-run television interrupted its live broadcast. The TV announcer did not explain the reason for the blackout, but social media was filled with the hashtag “Justice and Development Party suppresses Uighur voices” (AKPsilenceUigh).
Social media platforms broadcast the remaining paragraphs of Abdul Rashid’s speech. In her speech, she recounted the ordeal of her siblings and Parents being held in Chinese detention camps, while calling on Muslims and humanity to help her community.
Erdogan has often slammed Western societies for mistreating Muslims and denounced the rise of the specter of Muslimophobia, but he has shied away from publicly criticizing China’s treatment of the Uighur minority.
Largest Uighur Diaspora Community
Turkey has become the world’s largest Uighur diaspora community since it opened its doors to Uighurs fleeing political persecution in China. The Uighur minority is predominantly Muslim.
Experts warn that the rights of Turkey’s Uighur refugees, estimated to number 50,000, are being threatened by the new crown vaccine agreement recently signed between Ankara and Beijing. The Uighurs share traditional linguistic, cultural and religious roots with the Turks.
Rights activists issued a warning when the vaccine from China’s Kexing arrived in Turkey in late December last year after a long delay. Just days before the vaccines arrived, Beijing abruptly decided to ratify an extradition agreement reached with the Turkish government in 2017.
Critics say Beijing only agreed to ship the vaccines after formally ratifying the extradition agreement and forcing the Turkish government to do the same. Ankara, for its part, strongly denies the allegation.
Experts warn that any arrangement requiring Turkey to extradite people to China to face criminal charges would be particularly dangerous for Uighurs, who could face the death penalty.
Economic Ties
“Erdogan defends the Muslim cause everywhere unless doing so would damage Turkey’s economic or geopolitical interests,” said Soli Ozel, a lecturer in international relations at Istanbul’s Kadir Has University. “We see Turkey crowing about the mistreatment of Uighur Muslims in China for this very reason.”
Erdogan sparked outrage in China in 2009 when he accused China of “genocide” against Uighurs. But relations between the two countries have improved significantly in recent years, particularly in the area of trade and technology. China is said to be helping to prop up the increasingly weak Turkish economy and Turkish currency.
China is also Turkey’s largest supplier of the new crown vaccine. China shipped another 6.5 million doses of Chinese vaccines to Turkey on Monday, to much fanfare in Turkish state media.
Turkey’s parliament is expected to consider whether to approve an extradition agreement with China, but no date has been set.
Uighur community on edge
Ibrahim Ergin, a lawyer with the Istanbul-based International Refugee Rights Association, warned that “if this extradition agreement is approved by parliament, we can foresee that it will constitute a violation of the right to Life for many, if not all, of our clients.”
Ergin’s office is handling dozens of cases in which Uighurs have resisted Chinese extradition requests. Elkin said the extradition agreement clears most of the legal hurdles for China to seek the repatriation of Uighurs.
Elkin said, “In the case of my client, Abdulkadir Yapcan, all five witnesses who claimed my client was a terrorist were executed in the evidence provided by China.”
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, however, has repeatedly vowed that no Uighurs will be deported under a new Chinese deal.
Reports last year that Turkish security forces had detained Uighurs wanted by Chinese authorities raised alarms among Uighurs in Turkey.
Gazet Duvar, an Istanbul-based news portal, reported that Turkish police raided the homes of Uighur refugees on Jan. 18 during a manhunt for Islah terrorists, detained at least 10 people and took one to a deportation center in Istanbul’s western Liberian district before releasing her the following evening without charge. She was released the next evening without charge.
In a social media post, Seyit Tumturk, head of the exiled East Turkistan National Assembly, said, “If (the extradition deal) passes in parliament, hundreds of thousands of our East Turkistani people will go to Ankara, and we will set ourselves on fire in the president’s residence.” By “East Turkestan,” he meant China’s Xinjiang region, a term preferred by Uighurs.
“Our message is reaching the Turkish public and millions of Turks are aware of the gravity of the situation,” Toomturk told the Voice of America. “We hope the message also reached the president, politicians and members of the Turkish parliament.”
Analysts say the fate of the Uighurs does resonate in Turkish society, especially among Erdogan’s religious and nationalist-tinged voter base. With growing rumors of possible early elections, opposition parties are trying to exploit Erdogan’s weaknesses on the issue of the draft extradition law.
In a speech to parliamentary colleagues on Wednesday, opposition MP Akseneyn issued a clear warning to those who would approve the extradition deal.
“Anyone who does so will have the blood of our brothers and sisters on their hands,” she said.
Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu publicly visited Uighurs who were protesting outside the Chinese consulate on Wednesday.
In a tweet, he said, “As a part of humanity, I will do my best in this matter.”
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