Source: Amnesty International –
- Prisoner of conscience Ilham Tohti handed life sentence 10 years ago
- Governments urged to step up diplomatic efforts to secure his freedom
- Tohti’s daughter says Chinese authorities have tried to silence her activism
- Amnesty launches petition calling on Chinese government to release Tohti
The international community must take concrete steps to help secure the release of the Uyghur academic Ilham Tohti, Amnesty International said ahead of the 10-year-anniversary of his conviction on baseless charges of “separatism”.
Tohti was sentenced to life imprisonment on 23 September 2014 after an unfair trial. He was targeted by the Chinese government after peacefully advocating for dialogue and conciliation between the Uyghur ethnic group and China’s majority Han population.
“When Ilham Tohti promoted cooperation and peaceful coexistence between China’s Uyghur and Han communities, the Chinese government responded with repression and imprisonment. His decade-long incarceration is a further shameful stain on China’s troubled human rights record,” said Agnes Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International.
“This unhappy anniversary not only reminds us of Beijing’s inhumanity. It also highlights the failure of other governments to secure Ilham Tohti’s release. The shocking milestone of his 10th year behind bars underlines the need for the international community to do more.”
The charges against Ilham Tohti stemmed from his writings and teachings on systemic discrimination and oppression faced by Uyghurs in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of northwest China (Xinjiang).
It is an outrage that the persecution of Uyghurs including Ilham Tohti continues unabated, and with impunity.
Agnes Callamard
While critical of Chinese government policies in Xinjiang, Ilham Tohti consistently opposed violence and separatism and worked to build bridges between ethnic communities in accordance with Chinese laws.
He was awarded the Sakharov Prize – the European Parliament’s top human rights prize – in 2019.
“The bestowal of awards recognizes and affirms Ilham Tothi’s leading human rights contribution, as well as his own human rights plight. Yet what he needs most is freedom, and to achieve that he deserves unswerving public advocacy from the international community, calling for his release. That means world leaders directly demanding action from their Chinese counterparts – at every high-level meeting, every UN conference, every time,” Agnes Callamard said.
“It is the compassionate stance of Ilham Tohti that makes his imprisonment particularly heinous, and that compels the global community to do more to defend his rights. Ilham Tohti is a prisoner of conscience, and his freedom would be a crucial step in advancing human rights and justice in China.”