The leaked ‘Qaraqash Document’ shows that Uighur Muslims were sent into detention and ‘re-education’ for growing a beard or wearing a veil, as well as having more than one child.
A leaked document from the Uyghur Human Rights Project shows inhuman treatment and systematic persecution of China’s ethnic minorities, especially the Uighur Muslims. A leaked document lists details of hundreds of individuals detained in Qaraqash county and offers insights into China’s persecution of Uighurs and other ethnic minorities. The document called the “Qaraqash Document” is available on UHRP website.
The documents contains details of detention centers, reasons for individuals sent for detention, and the methodology adopted to execute China’s’ ‘re-education’ policy of these minorities. Detainees were forcibly sent into China’s coercive re-education system for offenses related to common religious practices such as growing a beard or wearing a veil, as well as for having too many children in violation of China’s One Child policy. The minorities were also interned if they were found applying for a passport and did not leave the country. The document lists details of close to 400 people who have been forced into detention.
The top most reason for detention is shown as ‘Birth Policy Violations’ with 115 detentions followed by ‘Unsafe post 80s, 90s, or 00s person’ with 91 detentions. 33 people have been interned for wearing a veil or having a beard. 25 have been sent to detention centers for having applied for a passport but did not leave the country and 19 have been interned for ‘Religious extremist thought infection’.
The data contained in the Qaraqash Document, appears to have been gathered between 2017 and 2019 and contains detailed information about the familial, social, and religious circles of internees. The Document also provides confirmation of the veracity of eyewitness and survivor testimony, especially the reasons for detention, the systematic reliance on guilt by association to deprive individuals of their liberty, and the sorting of detainees into “standard,” “strict,” and “maximum” detention protocols.
The China Cables
The leak of the ‘Qaraqash Document’ comes months after the investigation of International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) revealed in November 2019 the secret operations manual for the internment camps in Xinjiang. The investigation report which came to be known as ‘China Cables’, showed that the camps hold detainees in prison-like conditions and force them to undergo ideological indoctrination.
The China Cables also uncovered the methods of massive surveillance and data collection system employed by the Chinese government in Xinjiang. It used artificial intelligence to select entire categories of the population for detention.
However, despite these revelations China has maintained that there are no human rights violations in its treatment of Uighurs in Xinjiang. It claims that the ‘re-education’ is part of its efforts to ‘uproot terrorism and to prevent people from becoming radicalized’.
‘Champions of Muslims’ tongue-tied
Several countries like Pakistan, Turkey and Malaysia who have been vocal of internal affairs of India vis-a-vis Kashmir and Article 370, have chosen to remain silent or ended their concern over treatment of Uighurs by China with a whimper. The cabal of self-proclaimed liberals too have been tongue-tied over the leak. Not one has openly spoken against the Chinese government and its treatment of its ethnic minorities.
In fact, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had visited China in July 2019 and did not speak a word about the treatment of Uighur Muslims. Uighur activists had criticised him for failing to speak out against China’s detention of hundreds of thousands of Muslims in Xinjiang.
It can be recalled that Prime Minister and Premiers of Pakistan, Turkey and Malaysia had unnecessarily poked their nose into abrogation of Article 370 which in no way takes away the rights of anyone including Muslims. Moreover, discounting the fact that it was an internal matter of India, these countries had vowed to form an consortium against India including a media blitzkrieg in the name of Muslim rights.
However, the same entities have remained silent over China’s treatment of its Muslim citizens which are against every principle of Human Rights.
