Ethnic Uighur asylum-seekers forcibly repatriated over the weekend had warned the UN refugee agency they feared long jail terms or even the death penalty if they were sent back to China, statements seen by reporters showed.
The 20 Uighur Muslims had fled to Cambodia in search of asylum after witnessing and documenting violent ethnic riots in the restive western Chinese region of Xinjiang this summer that left nearly 200 dead. They were put on a plane from Phnom Penh to Beijing on Saturday under heavy pressure from China, despite strong protests from the US and the UN.
China has called the Uighurs suspected criminals, and on Monday defended the forced returns, saying it was in line with immigration law.
Several of the Uighurs had told the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), in Cambodia that they feared lengthy imprisonment or even the death penalty if they were returned to China because they had been involved in the summer’s ethnic unrest.
Their written statements, which had been provided to the UN to support their asylum applications, were obtained independently by reporters on Monday. Their names are not being published for fear of retaliation by the government. The statements describe the bloodshed that broke out after security forces cracked down on protesting Uighurs.
One man, a 29-year-old from Kashgar, said he had taken photos and videos of the chaos on July 5 in the Xinjiang capital of Urumqi. He told of watching and filming from a roof at night as military police clashed with and shot at protesters, and Uighurs fought back with rocks. He said he saw bloodied bodies in the streets.
“I felt like I was in a battlefield. Looking down at the streets full of Uighur bodies, I thought that I was going to die,” he said in his statement.
Four days later, he met a foreign reporter on the streets and agreed to turn over the photographs and video footage.
“If I am returned to China, I am sure that I will be sentenced to life imprisonment or the death penalty for my involvement in the Urumqi riots,” he said in his statement.
Another 29-year-old witness, from Aksu, who had sold cellphones for a living, said he had joined some 300 protesters in the main square before hundreds of police arrived and began beating them.
“I heard shots fired and became very scared ... The next morning, I went into the street after praying. I saw blood on the streets,” he said in his statement.
The group of Uighurs had made the journey from China’s far west through to Vietnam and then Cambodia with the help of a network of missionary groups. Two Uighurs fled before the group was forced to return on a plane sent to Phnom Penh on Saturday.
The EU said on Monday it was “deeply concerned” about Cambodia’s decision to return the group of Uighurs.
“The [Cambodian] government’s action shows a worrying disregard for Cambodia’s obligations under international law, as well as for specific undertakings given to UNHCR in this case,” a statement from the EU said.
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