Outspoken Uyghur Economist Presumed Detained After Urumqi Clashes
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HONG KONG-An outspoken economist from China's Uyghur ethnic minority,
whose blog was cited for allegedly instigating deadly ethnic clashes in
Xinjiang, has gone silent and his whereabouts are unknown after he
reported police had summoned him from his Beijing home, Radio Free Asia
(RFA) reports.
"Police have been watching my home for two days now," Ilham Tohti, an
economics professor at the Central Nationalities University in Beijing,
said July 7 in a telephone interview, two days after deadly clashes in
the northwestern city of Urumqi killed at least 156 people.
"They are calling me now, and I have to go. I may be out of touch for
some time," he told RFA's Uyghur service.
"I wasn't involved in anything, but I am not safe. The police are
calling me," Tohti said, and then hung up. Subsequent phone calls rang
unanswered.
On July 6, he told RFA's Cantonese service that he had gathered
information on the clashes but wouldn't release it because the timing
was too sensitive.
Uyghur Online publishes in Chinese and Uyghur and is seen as a moderate,
intellectual Web site addressing social issues. Authorities have closed
it on several previous occasions.
Tohti's blog, Uyghur Online, was specifically targeted in a July 5
speech by the governor of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR),
Nur Bekri, as an instigator of the clashes, along with exiled Uyghur
leader Rebiya Kadeer.
Tohti's last blog entry, published through a U.S. server at 10:52 a.m.
Beijing time July 7 and now blocked inside China, reads:
"As the editor of Uyghur Online, I want only to tell Nur Bekri, 'You are
right, everything you say is right, because you will decide everything.
I have already offended too many powerful people, including yourself and
others whom I don't want to and don't dare to offend. But right or
wrong, there will be justice."
"I always tell myself [to be] cool and calm and make rational analyses.
Going to court to resolve disputes is the fairest course of action in a
lawful society. I have my own lawyer. When my trial comes up, don't
appoint a lawyer for me. I will refuse any court-appointed lawyer."
"Even if we say that Uyghur Online and outsiders stirred thing
up-stirred what up? People can think for themselves. If everything were
working so well, why did so many people suddenly come out and riot? I
think after this event the central government and the local government
should give this some thought."
The clashes on Sunday in Urumqi, the XUAR capital, flared between Han
Chinese and Uyghurs following attacks on Uyghur migrant workers at a
factory in the southern province of Guangdong last month. Official media
said 156 people died in riots Sunday. The ethnicity of the dead was not
specified.
Online photos of corpses sparked calls for revenge, and thousands of
armed Han Chinese poured onto Urumqi's streets Tuesday, trying to break
through police lines into Uyghur neighborhoods.
Earlier detentions
Tohti has said he was interrogated repeatedly and accused of separatism
after he spoke out in March against Chinese policies in Xinjiang,
particularly the disproportionately high unemployment there among
Uyghurs, compared with Han Chinese.
He has called on authorities to ease curbs on free expression and foster
greater economic opportunity for Uyghurs in their native Xinjiang
region, where poverty and joblessness are commonplace.
"There are visible changes in China," he said in an interview with RFA's
Uyghur service in May. "But in terms of freedom and democracy,
Xinjiang's situation is the worst of the worst, compared with other
regions of China.
"What I have encountered at this time is typical. My Web site was shut
down without notice. I was interrogated many times and threatened. I am
a legal Beijing resident, and by law I should not be interrogated by
Xinjiang police officials, but it has happened."
"This shows how long the local authorities' reach is. They accused me of
separatism," he said. "But is demanding implementation of the autonomy
law separatism?"
China's 1984 Regional Ethnic Autonomy Law is the main legal framework
for managing the affairs of China's ethnic minorities. It promises a
high degree of autonomy for minority groups, but critics say its
implementation in many areas has been weak.
"There is no major problem with the main points of the central
government's policy," Tohti said.
His goal, he said, is "equal opportunity and equal development in
Xinjiang, equal with other provincial regions of China-and equal
opportunity and equal development between the Uyghur people and the Han
Chinese immigrants in Xinjiang."
Slammed governor
In an interview in March, Tohti also sharply criticized the governor of
Xinjiang, Nur Bekri, as incompetent.
Tohti, who said he feared for his own safety, was speaking as the
National People's Congress, China's annual session of parliament, met in
Beijing, with Bekri warning of a "more fierce struggle" against
separatist unrest in the region.
"My message to the Xinjiang government is, 'You should know that there
is no peace without equal development between Han immigrants and native
Uyghurs in Xinjiang. Similarly, there is no stability in the Uyghur
region without freedom of speech.'"
"My message to the central government is, 'Don't listen only to what the
local government officials in Xinjiang say-listen to the people. Don't
just make decisions based on government research-also look at
independent research. This will be very helpful for protecting the unity
of the nation, and the long-term prosperity of the country.'"
According to his official biography, Tohti was born in Atush, Xinjiang,
on Oct. 25, 1969. He graduated from the Northeast Normal University and
the Economics School at the Central Nationalities University in Beijing.
Original reporting by Shohret Hoshur for RFA's Uyghur service. Uyghur
service director: Dolkun Kamberi. Additional reporting by Gregory Ho for
RFA's Cantonese service. Cantonese service director: Shiny Li. Written
and produced in English by Sarah Jackson-Han.
Radio Free Asia is a private, nonprofit corporation broadcasting and
publishing online news, information, and commentary in nine East Asian
languages to listeners who do not have access to full and free news
media. RFA's broadcasts seek to promote the rights of freedom of opinion
and expression, including the freedom to "seek, receive, and impart
information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers."
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 7, 2009
Contact: John Estrella 202 530 4900 estrellaj(a)rfa.org
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Rohit Mahajan 202 530 4976 mahajanr(a)rfa.org
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Radio Free Asia Named Broadcaster of the Year at 2009 New York Festivals
RFA Reporters, Services Take Record 7 Awards
WASHINGTON, DC - Today, Radio Free Asia was named Broadcaster of the
Year by the New York Festivals for winning the largest number of awards
among participating broadcasters. Four of Radio Free Asia's nine
language services won top honors for excellence in journalism in the
international competition, which included three gold, one silver and
three bronze medals.
"While Radio Free Asia has consistently been honored at the New York
Festivals over the years, it is deeply gratifying that the outstanding
work by our staff won a record number of awards this year," said Libby
Liu, President of Radio Free Asia. "RFA reporters work tirelessly under
the most difficult circumstances to bring uncensored news to our
listeners. On a daily basis, they overcome seemingly insurmountable
obstacles in environments that are hostile for journalists.
"We are inspired by this high recognition. We will continue our quest
for journalistic excellence to make an even bigger impact on the lives
of those we serve."
Information about the winners and their submissions follows:
* Broadcaster Shohret Hoshur of the RFA's Uyghur service won a
gold medal in the Best Human Interest category for her exclusive story
on an ethnic Uyghur woman in China facing a forced, third-term abortion.
International pressure resulting from the story led to authorities
releasing the woman, who was able to give birth to a son.
* RFA's Burmese service won a gold medal in the category of Best
Ongoing News Story for its excellent coverage of Cyclone Nargis, which
both warned listeners of the approaching storm and, after it made
landfall, helped survivors find desperately needed food, shelter,
medical attention and other humanitarian aid.
* Reporter Ding Xiao of RFA's Mandarin service won a gold medal
in the category of Best Investigative Report for her story on a
petitioner from China's eastern Jiangsu province who was held by
authorities without due process in a "law study group" detention center
for disciplinary re-education.
* Reporter Peter Zhong of RFA's Mandarin service took a silver
medal in Best Investigative Report category for his four-episode story
titled "Crime without Punishment" in which he exposed the extent of
Guilin's police-run underworld through his extensive coverage on female
prisoner abuse.
* Reporter Jill Ku of RFA's Mandarin service won a bronze medal
in the category of Best Special Report for her exclusive story, which
caught on audio and video Chinese police arresting a petitioner, who was
being interviewed by RFA, during the Beijing 2008 Olympics.
* RFA Mandarin Service's Asia Pacific Report was awarded a bronze
medal in the Best Newscast category for its story on Chinese lawyers
attempting to file a civil lawsuit on behalf of the families of victims
of the tainted milk powder scandal that left at least six infants and
children dead and 300,000 suffering from related ailments.
* Giao Pham of RFA's Vietnamese service was awarded a bronze
medal in the National/International Affairs category for his timely
coverage on young Olympic protestors being arrested and beaten by police
for demonstrating against China's torch carrying in Hanoi - a story
which was not covered by media inside Vietnam.
To follow Radio Free Asia's breaking news and developing stories
happening throughout East Asia, please visit our Web site at www.rfa.org
and sign up for RFA's news in English via Twitter at
https://twitter.com/RadioFreeAsia.
# # #
Radio Free Asia is a private, nonprofit corporation broadcasting and
publishing online news, information, and commentary in nine East Asian
languages to listeners who do not have access to full and free news
media. RFA's broadcasts seek to promote the rights of freedom of
opinion and expression, including the freedom to "seek, receive, and
impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of
frontiers." RFA is funded by an annual grant from the Broadcasting Board
of Governors.
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Communications
Radio Free Asia
2025 M Street, NW
Washington DC, 20036
(202) 530-4976
mahajanr(a)rfa.org
Tight Security After Deadly Xinjiang Clash
Go to www.rfa.org/english/news/special/XinjiangRiot <http://www.rfa.org/english/news/special/XinjiangRiot> for complete multimedia coverage
HONG KONG-Residents of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) report a heavy police and paramilitary presence inside and outside the regional capital, Urumqi, where deadly clashes erupted at the weekend following a protest by ethnic minority Uyghurs, Radio Free Asia (RFA) reports.
"The situation in Gulja is so intense right now. I saw armed police everywhere when I went out to buy oil this morning. I saw five armored vehicles patrolling the streets. There are many police cars, patrolling on every street," one man told RFA's Uyghur service.
"Military police are stationed in front of every government building and other work units. Since armed police blocked the main entrance to Ili Teachers' College, I went home through the back door," he said, adding that officials in the northwestern XUAR city of Gulja had imposed a curfew.
"They said they are going check every vehicle from other towns. They said it's better for us to remain inside," the man said.
The weekend clashes, which left at least 156 dead and hundreds injured, flared after an initially peaceful demonstration took to the city's streets to protest how authorities handled recent violence between majority Han Chinese and mostly Muslim Uyghur factory workers in the southern province of Guangdong, witnesses said.
According to the official Chinese Xinhua news agency, some of the 156 dead were retrieved from Urumqi streets and lanes, while others were confirmed dead at hospitals. Xinhua also said more than 700 suspects had been taken into custody.
Urumqi is home to 2.3 million residents, including many Uyghurs, who have chafed for years under Chinese rule. The city is located 3,270 kms (2,050 miles) west of Beijing.
Security forces were now manning checkpoints at strategic points throughout the city, and ethnic minority officers were being drafted from outlying regions to help interrogate detained suspects, police said.
Security is always tight in the XUAR, and after the clashes phone service was in many instances suspended. Uyghur witnesses spoke on condition that they remain unnamed.
Strip-searches reported
"The information we are getting is that this is sort of spreading," World Uyghur Congress and Uyghur American Association leader Rebiya Kadeer told a news conference at the National Press Club in Washington late Monday.
"We have heard news that in Hotan, in Aksu, in cities like Karamai, there were protests. And because of the tragic event, many people were killed and a lot of families and friends were killed. So others may have joined in other towns as well to protest," said Kadeer, whom Chinese authorities have blamed for instigating the clashes.
A former businesswoman in Xinjiang who served time in prison for alleged subversion, she denied instigating the clashes.
Sources at Xinjiang University estimate the number of dead at "nearly 400," including many outside Xinjiang University, Kadeer said, but she cautioned that "we can't confirm" that number.
A Uyghur man living in Saudi Arabia said residents of the old Silk Road city of Kashgar were reporting that some 300 people tried to stage a protest outside a mosque and at the local People's Square but were quickly suppressed.
A Uyghur youth in Kashgar gave a similar account. "A protest was planned in Kashgar today at 3 p.m.," he said.
"But first they set up checkpoints on every road into Kashgar, then there were two or three Chinese soldiers in various places. But after 3 p.m., the government brought a lot of armed forces in around the Heytkar Mosque," the youth said.
"They blocked both sides of the mosque and wouldn't let people in or out. They took a lot of photos and video and detained some people."
In Urumqi, meanwhile, the city was tense but calm.
Residents said numerous intersections had been blocked, and police were said to have surrounded a Uyghur settlement, called the Horserace Track, and detained all adult males.
"They are gathering them in the field, strip-searching them, and pushing them down to lie on the field, naked," one man said.
"This morning they also took away many youths from that area whether they participated [in the protest] or not. They just took away many Uyghur youths."
Electroshock weapons
Other witnesses described a heavy presence by security forces on Sunday.
Before the demonstrators reached the People's Square in central Urumqi, armed police were in position and moved to disperse them, one witness said.
Police "scattered them [the protesters]," he said. "They beat them. Beat them, including girls, very, very viciously," he said. "The police were chasing them and captured many of them. They were beaten badly."
"When the demonstrators reached the People's Square, armed police suppressed them using electroshock weapons and so on," he said, adding, "After that, other protests erupted in Uyghur areas of town."
A Uyghur patient at the Dosluk No. 3 Hospital said she saw at least 10 to 15 injured men there. Official CCTV television said the hospital treated more than 100 people injured in the clashes, four of whom died.
"There were Uyghurs and Chinese, but mostly Uyghurs. There were both badly injured and lightly injured. Blood was everywhere," she said.
"Riots took place in bus stations, in tourist spots, and in shopping areas. Scores of Uyghurs were killed. Armed police were carrying automatic assault rifles and machine guns. There were thousands of soldiers. It had a tremendous impact, and we won't be able to go to work for three days," another resident said, also speaking on condition of anonymity.
City 'now calm'
A police officer in Urumqi contacted by telephone early Monday said a curfew had been imposed on Uyghur areas, and residents said many shops were shuttered.
"People are dead. This might have planned by evil-minded people," the officer said.
"All the shops in the area where the riot happened were closed today," one Uyghur girl said in an interview Monday.
"I walked around the streets a while ago. There were police and soldiers in the streets. There are some Uyghurs, but no Chinese. Today, for the first time in my life, I have a feeling that Urumqi is my hometown, because there were no Chinese in the streets. I am so glad."
A shop owner in Urumqi who declined to give his name said he had had to close for business as police swarmed through the city.
"We closed our doors from last night. Armed police dispersed the protesters in about two hours. Firefighters were also dispatched and last night police were all over the city," he said in an interview Monday.
Deadly clash in June was trigger
Uyghur sources said the protest Sunday was organized online and began early July 5 with about 1,000 people but grew by thousands more during the day. They gathered to demand a probe into the deadly fight in Guangdong late last month.
In separate interviews, three Uyghur witnesses now under Chinese government protection said the fighting in Shaoguan began when Han Chinese laborers stormed the dormitories of Uyghur colleagues, beating them with clubs, bars, and machetes.
The clashes began late June 25 and lasted into the early hours of the following day. At least two people were killed and 118 injured, and witnesses said the numbers could be higher.
A number of Uyghurs have voiced anger and bitterness over the clash and accused police of doing too little, too late to stop it.
"If the government had given any explanation about the Shaoguan incident without hiding it from Uyghurs, this would not have happened in Urumqi," one Urumqi businessman said Monday.
"If the government had explained, as the demonstrators demanded, the protests would have dispersed," he said, referring to the demonstrations Sunday. "Instead, the government got heavy-handed, and this angered the people."
"Because the police took the protest leaders away, the protesters did not know what to do and acted aimlessly. If the leaders had not been captured, the demonstration would have ended peacefully. Trying to dissipate [the protest], the government only aggravated it."
Simmering resentment
Like Tibet, which erupted in protests in early 2008, the XUAR has long been home to smoldering ethnic tensions related to religion, culture, and regional economic development that residents say has disproportionately enriched and employed majority Han Chinese immigrants.
China has accused Uyghur separatists of fomenting unrest in the region, particularly in the run-up to and during the Olympics last year, when a wave of violence hit the vast desert region.
The violence prompted a crackdown in which the government says 1,295 people were detained for state security crimes, along with tighter curbs on the practice of Islam.
XUAR Party Chief Wang Lequan was quoted in China's official media as saying the fight against these forces was a "life or death struggle," and he has spoken since of the need to "strike hard" against ethnic separatism.
Activists have reported wide-scale detentions, arrests, new curbs on religious practices, travel restrictions, and stepped-up controls over free expression.
Original reporting by Mamatjan Juma, Shohret Hoshur, Medina, and Mehriban for RFA's Uyghur service and by Qiao Long for RFA's Mandarin service. Translated from the Uyghur by Mamatjan Juma and from the Mandarin by Jia Yuan. Uyghur service director: Dolkun Kamberi. Mandarin service director: Jennifer Chou. Written and produced in English by Sarah Jackson-Han. Edited by Luisetta Mudie.
Radio Free Asia is a private, nonprofit corporation broadcasting and publishing online news, information, and commentary in nine East Asian languages to listeners who do not have access to full and free news media. RFA's broadcasts seek to promote the rights of freedom of opinion and expression, including the freedom to "seek, receive, and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers." RFA is funded by an annual grant from the Broadcasting Board of Governors.
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Burma, North Korea Said To Expand Military Ties
Also on www.rfa.org:
Hong Kong's Lyrical Lament www.rfa.org/english/news/complain-07012009112410.html
BANGKOK-A leaked report purportedly drafted by authorities in Burma's military government describes a top-secret visit to North Korea late last year by Burma's top brass, during which the two sides pledged to significantly expand cooperation in military training and arms production, Radio Free Asia (RFA) reports.
The 37-page report in Burmese claims to contain details of a Nov. 22-29 visit to North Korea by 17 Burmese officials, billed as a goodwill visit to China and reportedly led by Gen. Thura Shwe Mann, Burma's third-ranked leader and armed forces chief of staff.
It also contains 118 photos said to have been taken in North Korea and 64 said to have been taken in China, from which the group was said to have traveled to North Korea.
Photographs in the report show a Burmese delegation in uniform in China but in civilian clothing in North Korea, suggesting a bid to keep the visit to North Korea low-profile.
Exile Burmese media have voiced alarm in recent days at reports of growing ties between Burma and nuclear-armed North Korea, both highly reclusive pariah states targeted by international sanctions, and have warned that this warming relationship indicates Burma's own nuclear ambitions.
The report is titled "Report of the High-Level Burmese Military delegation led by SPDC member and Military Chief General Thura Shwe Mann to the DPRK [Democratic People's Republic of Korea] and the PRC [People's Republic of China] from Nov. 21-Dec. 2, 2008."
SPDC, denoting the State Peace and Development Council, is the Burmese junta's formal name.
The report says the delegation left Burma's remote new capital, Naypyidaw, on a special aircraft Nov. 21 at the invitation of Chinese Defense Ministry Central Commission member and armed forces Chief of Staff Gen. Chen Bingde and North Korean Defense Ministry Chief of General Staff Gen. Kim Kyok Sik.
The report was transmitted to RFA's Burmese service through a knowledgeable source in Burma's former capital, Rangoon.
Out in the cold
The report surfaced just as both regimes find themselves farther out in the wilderness than ever before.
North Korea recently launched a long-range missile over Japan and conducted a second nuclear test, prompting a new round of U.N. sanctions and an international outcry, even from longtime allies in Moscow and Beijing. It test-fired four short-range missiles on Tuesday.
Burma has meanwhile brought a bizarre criminal case against detained opposition leader and Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and renewed a military offensive against ethnic rebels in the east, forcing thousands to seek refuge in Thailand.
Over the last week, U.S. officials tracked a North Korean ship, the Kang Nam I, suspected of heading toward Burma with illicit weapons on board in violation of new U.N. sanctions. The ship turned around and headed back north on Sunday.
The Bangkok-based Swedish journalist Bertil Lintner, an authority on North Korea, said the report may have been fabricated and leaked to discredit the Burmese exile press. But he added that it could also indicate "there are people within the military establishment not very happy with its cooperation with North Korea."
If the latter is true, "They leaked the information in order to make it known to the international community, especially the U.N. Security Council, which has imposed sanctions on new North Korea arm exports," Lintner said.
Htay Aung, a researcher at the Thai-based Burmese opposition group Network for Democracy and Development, said he believed the report was authentic, and either sold by mid- to low-level officers or leaked by opponents of cooperation with Pyongyang.
The latter group "seems unhappy with projects to equip the military with costly weapons and technologies as the country goes deeper into poverty," Htay Aung said.
Aim to modernize
The stated aim of the visit was "to modernize the Burmese military and increase its capabilities through visiting and studying the militaries" of China and North Korea.
The group reportedly included Gen. Thura Shwe Mann, Lt. Gen. Myint Hlaing (anti-air defense chief), Maj. General Hla Htay Win (training), Maj. General Khin Aung Myint (air force), Maj. General Thein Htay (vice chief of staff, ordnance), Maj. Gen. Mya Win (munitions), Brig. Gen. Hla Myint (tanks), Brig. Gen. Kyaw Nyunt (military communications), Brig. Gen. Nyan Tun (engineering), and staff officers.
After signing a Memorandum of Understanding with the North Korean side on Nov. 27, according to the report, the Burmese delegation deemed the visit a success. The report concludes:
"1. The two militaries will cooperate in the teaching and training of military science. The Burmese military will focus on studying special forces training, military security training, training in tunnel warfare, air defense training, and language training for both countries. 2. The two militaries will cooperate in the building of tunnels for aircraft and ships as well as other underground military installations. The two countries will cooperate to modernize military arms and equipment and will exchange experiences on such matters. As such, the objective and aim of the high-level visit is deemed to be successful."
The report makes reference to several appendices that are omitted from the text obtained by RFA.
Outings and visits
A detailed account in the report includes discussions with North Korean Chief of General Staff Gen. Kim Kyok Sik, visits to weapons and radar factories, and a missile launch site.
About one-quarter of the report is devoted to comparing the Chinese and North Korean militaries. It makes no specific mention of any actual or planned military purchases.
The report says the Burmese delegation was shown North Korean surface-to-air missiles and rockets, along with naval and air defense systems and tunnel construction, including how Pyongyang stores aircraft and ships underground to protect them from aerial attack.
It also describes a Nov. 23 visit to North Korea's National Air Defense Control Center and a Nov. 24 visit to a North Korean naval unit in Nampo.
Subsequent outings included tours of an armored division of the North Korean Aerial Defense Corps, the AA Weapons & Rockets Factory, and three underground missile factories, according to the report.
North Korean officials also showed the Burmese delegation the USS Pueblo warship, seized by North Korea in 1968 and now docked in the North Korean capital, Pyongyang.
The tour included visits to Pyongyang and to Myohyang, where the government has dug secret tunnels to store jet aircraft, missiles, tanks, and weapons.
The delegation also visited a Scud tactical ballistic missile factory outside Pyongyang, the report said. Pyongyang has since the 1980s been a major supplier of Scud missiles to Iran, Egypt, and Syria.
Market for North Korea
Another recent report by Lintner, the Swedish journalist, claims that North Korean engineers have been actively building a vast network of underground tunnels in Burma.
Lintner, author of Blood Brothers: The Criminal Underworld of Asia and Great Leader, Dear Leader: Demystifying North Korea under the Kim Clan, reported that the Burmese junta began tunnel construction with North Korean assistance as early as 2005, when the country's capital was moved to Naypyidaw from Rangoon.
Lintner said he regards the report as further evidence of deepening ties between Burma and North Korea, with China-unwilling to sell arms to Burma for fear of alienating major powers-now playing the role of broker.
North Korea is likely looking for new arms buyers now that its arms sales to Libya and Pakistan have dried up, he said.
"North Korea has a lot of things to offer, and they are willing to sell anyone who can pay for it," Lintner said. "They are looking for a new customer. And Burma seems to be the perfect one."
Original reporting by Kyaw Min Htun for RFA's Burmese service. Translated by Soe Thinn. Burmese service director: Nancy Shwe. Executive producer: Susan Lavery. Written and produced in English by Sarah Jackson-Han.
Radio Free Asia is a private, nonprofit corporation broadcasting and publishing online news, information, and commentary in nine East Asian languages to listeners who do not have access to full and free news media. RFA's broadcasts seek to promote the rights of freedom of opinion and expression, including the freedom to "seek, receive, and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers." RFA is funded by an annual grant from the Broadcasting Board of Governors.
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