Engnews December 2017

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RFA Breaking News: Two Uyghur Students Die in China’s Custody Following Voluntary Return From Egypt

by Paul Eckert

Two Uyghur Students Die in China’s Custody Following Voluntary Return From Egypt Dec. 21, 2017 - Two Uyghur students who were detained after voluntarily returning to northwest China’s Xinjiang region from Egypt this year amid a call by authorities for members of the ethnic group living abroad to travel home have died in police custody, according to sources. A resident of Xinjiang, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told RFA’s Uyghur Service that Abdusalam Mamat and Yasinjan, both from Korla (in Chinese, Kuerle) city, had been studying at prestigious Al-Azhar Islamic University in Egypt’s capital Cairo since 2015 and 2016, respectively. After Xinjiang’s government issued an order earlier this year for Uyghurs living abroad to travel home to “register” with authorities, Mamat voluntarily returned to Korla in January and Yasinjan three months later, the source said. The two young men were immediately imprisoned upon arrival and later died in police custody under suspicious circumstances, despite having no prior health issues, he added. Since Xinjiang Communist Party chief Chen Quanguo was appointed to his post in August last year, a series of harsh policies have been initiated targeting Uyghurs in the region, where members of the mostly Muslim ethnic group complain of religious and cultural repression and harassment under Chinese rule. Thousands of Uyghurs accused of harboring “extremist” and “politically incorrect” views have been detained in political re-education camps and prisons throughout Xinjiang since April as part of an ongoing crackdown. The Communist Party secretary of Korla’s Aq-Eriq village, who said that 23 people are currently detained in his village, confirmed in a telephone call with RFA this week that Mamat and Yasinjan had died “in prison.” Mamat “was the son of the imam of the Grand Mosque,” he said, referring to Korla’s biggest Muslim house of worship, also known as the “Juma Mosque.” Yasinjan was the sibling of an officer from Korla’s Charbagh township police station who had worked for seven to eight years at the township’s prison, the secretary said, adding that “not even his police brother could save his life.” “Yasinjan’s brother was dismissed from his police work prior to Yasinjan’s death,” he said. “He was dismissed because he began to inquire about Yasinjan’s imprisonment.” Enver Osman, the secretary of Lenger village, in nearby Awat township, said he was unfamiliar with Yasinjan’s brother, when asked about policemen who had been recently fired from the Charbagh police station. “We have many who have been dismissed, so I don’t know which one,” he said. Cairo students Some 20 Uyghur students in Cairo are unaccounted for several months after authorities launched a dragnet targeting members of the ethnic minority at China’s behest, two of the young men, who said they endured regular abuse while in detention, recently told RFA. More than 200 Uyghurs, many of them religious students at Al-Azhar University, have been detained since July 4, rounded up in restaurants or at their homes, with others seized at airports as they tried to flee to safer countries, sources said in earlier reports. Dozens of Uyghurs are believed to have already been deported home to Xinjiang, where rights groups say they face a serious risk of arbitrary detention and torture, but many of those who have voluntarily returned home have also been taken into custody. China regularly conducts “strike hard” campaigns in Xinjiang, including police raids on Uyghur households, restrictions on Islamic practices, and curbs on the culture and language of the Uyghur people, including videos and other material. While China blames some Uyghurs for “terrorist” attacks, experts outside China say Beijing has exaggerated the threat and that repressive policies in Xinjiang are responsible for an upsurge in violence there that has left hundreds dead since 2009. Reported by Shohret Hoshur for RFA’s Uyghur Service. Translated by Alim Seytoff. Written in English by Joshua Lipes. View this s tory online at: http://www.rfa.org/english/news/uyghur/students-12212017141002.html 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. If you no longer wish to receive RFA news releases, send an e-mail to engnews-leave(a)rfanews.org . To add your name to our mailing list, send an e-mail to engnews-join(a)rfanews.org . ##### All media inquiries may be sent to Rohit Mahajan at mahajanr(a)rfa.org .

6 years, 8 months

WATCH: Radio Free Asia's Look Back at 2017

by Rohit Mahajan

>From the plight of the Rohingya to Liu Xiaobo's death to a dramatic defection in the DMZ, 2017 was full of remarkable stories showing both the struggle and resilience of the human spirit. Radio Free Asia <http://www.rfa.org/english/> was there. WATCH . https://youtu.be/PtFXMbtlg2g Season's greetings from all of us at Radio Free Asia. Rohit Mahajan | Radio Free Asia | Director of Public Affairs and Digital Strategy <mailto:mahajanr@rfa.org> mahajanr(a)rfa.org | O: 202.530.4976 | M: 202.489.8021

6 years, 8 months

CPJ Report Highlights Threats to RFA Journalists, Former Staff

by Rohit Mahajan

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Dec. 13, 2017 Contact: Rohit Mahajan 202 530 4976 <mailto:mahajanr@rfa.org> mahajanr(a)rfa.org CPJ Report Highlights Threats to RFA Journalists, Former Staff WASHINGTON - More than half of the countries in <http://www.rfa.org/english/> Radio Free Asia's target broadcast region are listed among the world's worst jailers of journalists in the Committee to Protect Journalists' <https://cpj.org/reports/2017/12/journalists-prison-jail-record-number-turke y-china-egypt.php> special report for 2017. The report cites China, Cambodia, and Vietnam -- countries that have imprisoned Radio Free Asia (RFA) current and former journalists, as well as contributors and sources. RFA President Libby Liu said the report's findings underscore not only the threats to free press, but also the importance of RFA's work and independent journalism in these countries and around the world. "Cambodia, Vietnam, and China persecute and make examples of journalists and sources who challenge the narratives of the ruling regimes," Liu said. "By resorting to desperate measures, these countries unwittingly highlight the impact and importance of a free press. "The situation in Cambodia, where two former RFA journalists have been charged with espionage, is especially egregious. Uon Chhin and Yeang Sothearin severed ties to RFA after our bureau was forced to close in September. Yet two months later they were arrested and charged, and they now wait in prison as a Cambodian court pursues what could be a months-long quest to assemble evidence for the prosecution. It's an absolute outrage. "In Vietnam, RFA contributors like Nguyen Van Hoa and Mother Mushroom have both been sentenced to jail and other correspondents are routinely stopped and searched, while their families are questioned and harassed by police. "In China, authorities detain and charge rights activists, citizen journalists, and family members who provide information or comments to RFA. "None of these individuals deserves to be imprisoned or face the might of authoritarian legal systems. Nor should their families and loved ones be forced to suffer at the hands of authorities. These acts of intimidation should cease and these individuals should be freed, without charges and without delay. "RFA thanks CPJ, RSF, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Frontline Defenders, and other global media rights groups for their sustained efforts to keep pressure on the international community to act." In Cambodia, former RFA journalists Uon Chhin and Yeang Sothearin from its Khmer Service, which was forced to close its Phnom Penh bureau in September, were arrested and are facing charges of "espionage." The two are being held at Prey Sar Prison in Phnom Penh. If tried and convicted, they face up to 15 years in prison. In Vietnam, video journalist and RFA contributor Nguyen Van Hoa was sentenced in November to seven years in prison for reporting on the 2016 chemical spill that devastated the country's central coast. Days after Nguyen's sentencing, blogger Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, known also as Mother Mushroom, lost her appeal of her 10-year prison sentence for her posts on Facebook about human rights and other underreported issues in Vietnam. According to CPJ's updated <https://cpj.org/data/imprisoned/2017/> database, China has 41 reporters and bloggers currently in prison, making it among the world's biggest jailers of journalists. CPJ also <https://cpj.org/blog/2017/12/in-china-medical-neglect-can-amount-to-a-death -sen.php> documents how medical neglect in Chinese prisons often amounts to a "death sentence" for jailed journalists. While no RFA journalists or sources have been arrested in Myanmar, the country has three reporters jailed and recently stepped up restrictions on media. # # # 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.

6 years, 8 months

RFA Releases e-Book of Chinese Dissident Political Cartoonist's Artwork

by Rohit Mahajan

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Dec. 13, 2017 Contact: Rohit Mahajan 202 530 4976 <mailto:mahajanr@rfa.org> mahajanr(a)rfa.org RFA Releases e-Book of Chinese Dissident Political Cartoonist's Artwork WASHINGTON - <http://www.rfa.org/english/> Radio Free Asia (RFA) today released an e-book featuring the artwork of Wang Liming, also known as Rebel Pepper, whose career as a political cartoonist began by satirizing politics in his native China. In this collection of 50 drawings, titled "Drawing Fire: The Political Cartoons of Rebel Pepper," Wang continues to apply his editorial and artistic wit to events in China, while also tackling issues from North Korean nuclear provocations to Cambodian political machinations to the Rohingya humanitarian crisis in Burma. RFA's e-book is available free for download on iTunes <https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/drawing-fire-the-political-cartoons-of-reb el-pepper/id1324163355?ls=1&mt=11> , Google Play <https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Radio_Free_Asia_Drawing_Fire_Th e_Political_Cartoon?id=aYNCDwAAQBAJ> , and the RFA website's <http://www.rfa.org/english/bookshelf> e-book shelf (in PDF format <http://www.rfa.org/english/bookshelf/RebelPepper.pdf> ). "Rebel Pepper masters the art of making big statements with few to no words," said Libby Liu, President of RFA. "Political cartoonists serve up satire, caricatures, and dark humor that can be controversial, if not subversive, even in free societies with long histories of unfettered media and open debate. "In countries where independent thought is repressed and even criminalized, the resonance of visual commentary can be a lifeline." Wang honed his craft in his native China, where the government is more famous for censorship than for a sense of humor, and where often grim political and human rights topics do not lend themselves easily to light treatment. His success in giving expression to the thoughts of his thousands of followers both on taboo subjects and on everyday experiences drew the wrath of the mighty Chinese Communist Party. "I want to use my talents for change using a format that can be understood by everyone," said Wang. "In China, to be a cartoonist is a very dangerous profession. I believe by doing my artwork I help friends and others in China whose voices have been silenced. To have an opportunity to think, say, and, of course, draw anything without fear is a right that cannot be taken for granted." Forced to leave his homeland in 2014, Rebel Pepper first found haven in Japan before settling in Washington, D.C. His cartoons have appeared in the Japanese edition of Newsweek, Index of Censorship, and China Digital Times, among other publications. He began working for RFA in June 2017. Throughout his journey he continued to hone his craft, challenging Chinese state-controlled narratives and expanding his graphic editorials for RFA. # # # 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. Rohit Mahajan | Radio Free Asia | Director of Public Affairs and Digital Strategy <mailto:mahajanr@rfa.org> mahajanr(a)rfa.org | O: 202.530.4976 | M: 202.489.8021

6 years, 8 months

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Engnews December 2017