On Sunday, researcher Nyrola Elimä reported that authorities in Thailand’s immigration detention center have separated 48 Uyghurs from other prisoners and prepared the former group for possible deportation to China. Thousands of Uyghurs have fled China—where human rights groups have concluded the government has committed possible crimes against humanity and genocide—only to end up detained in host countries and threatened with deportation. Thailand and neighboring countries in Southeast Asia are evidently not safe places for Uyghurs seeking protection. At The New York Times, Sui-Lee Wee and Nyrola Elimä described how the detained Uyghurs in Thailand have gone on a hunger strike to protest their treatment:
The men, who have been in Thai detention centers for more than a decade, started their hunger strike on Jan. 10, two days after they were given “voluntary return” forms to sign, according to accounts from two of the detainees.
All refused to sign the forms, but they were then required to pose for photographs. These instructions set off panic among the detainees because the same series of events in 2015 preceded Thailand’s abrupt deportation of 109 other Uyghurs to China.
[…] In a separate message on Jan. 13, [one] detainee said: “We are desperately seeking help from those living in the free world. You all know what will happen to us if we are sent back to China.” [Source]
The Bangkok Post reported on Wednesday that the Royal Thai Police (RTP) has denied trying to deport the Uyghurs to China: “National Police Chief Pol Gen Kittharath Punpetch said the RTP has not received any report of a plan to deport the Uyghurs, adding the issue needs to be discussed with the National Security Council (NSC).” As Jonathan Head of the BBC reported, “Unlike other inmates in the IDC, the fate of the Uyghurs is not handled by the Immigration Department but instead by Thailand’s National Security Council, a body chaired by the prime minister in which the military has significant influence.” Head elaborated on the Uyghurs’ “appalling” conditions in the detention center:
Their living conditions have been described by one human rights defender as "a hell on earth".
[…] They are kept in isolation from other inmates and are rarely allowed visits by outsiders or lawyers. They get few opportunities to exercise, or even to see daylight. They have been charged with no crime, apart from entering Thailand without a visa. Five Uyghurs have died in custody.
"The conditions there are appalling," says Chalida Tajaroensuk, director of the People’s Empowerment Foundation, an NGO trying to help the Uyghurs.
"There is not enough food – it is mostly just soup made with cucumber and chicken bones. It is crammed in there. The water they get, both for drinking and washing, is dirty. Only basic medicines are provided and these are inadequate. If someone falls ill, it takes a long time to get an appointment with the doctor. And because of the dirty water, the hot weather and bad ventilation, a lot of the Uyghurs get rashes or other skin problems." [Source]
This year marks the 50th anniversary of Thailand and China establishing diplomatic relations, and China’s important economic leverage might influence the Thai government’s willingness to cooperate with Chinese authorities. This month also marks the beginning of Thailand’s three-year membership on the UN Human Rights Council and latest attempts to showcase its image as a responsible actor vis-a-vis international law. Naturally, this month’s incident has drawn fierce criticism from human rights figures. Sarah Teich of the Human Rights Action Group wrote that “deporting these Uyghurs to the hands of a regime that is inflicting genocide on their people is tantamount to signing their death certificates,” adding, “Just because the Uyghurs won’t be harmed within Thailand’s borders won’t make Thailand any less guilty in the crime against these men.” Elaine Pearson, Asia director at Human Rights Watch, stated, “The Thai government should be helping people fleeing persecution, not jailing them, and certainly should not be violating international law and sending them into harm’s way.” On Tuesday, eight U.N. experts added their voices in condemning the potential deportation:
The Government of Thailand must immediately halt the possible transfer of 48 Uyghurs to the People’s Republic of China, UN experts said today, warning that the group was at real risk of torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment if they are returned.
“The treatment of the Uyghur minority in China is well-documented,” the experts said. “We are concerned they are at risk of suffering irreparable harm, in violation of the international prohibition on refoulement to torture.”
“The prohibition on refoulement prohibits the return or transfer in any manner whatsoever to a country where there is real risk of torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment,” they recalled.
[…] The experts urged Thailand to provide adequate and comprehensive medical care to the group of Uyghurs without delay. [Source]
The Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand scheduled an event on Wednesday titled “Forever stuck in limbo: Uyghurs in Thai immigration detention,” with a panel of experts to draw attention to the issue. Over 130 researchers and 4,100 members of the public have also signed an urgent appeal to the Thai government to immediately stop any forced deportation of Uyghur detainees and support U.N. actors in facilitating their humane treatment and safe refuge.
Last week, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio vowed to oppose Thailand’s deportation of Uyghurs, and the House Select Committee on the CCP penned a letter to the Thai government echoing Rubio’s statement. In response, some activists accused the the U.S. government of hypocrisy in condemning Thailand’s deportation of Uyghurs while refusing to admit Uyghur refugees to the U.S. and launching its own campaign of mass deportations at home.
