Justice For All’s Save Uyghur Campaign Condemns Cambodian Government for Deporting Uyghur Asylum Seeker

Washington, D.C. — December 17, 2024

For Immediate Release

Contact: Hena Zuberi

hena@justiceforall.org

(202) 922-5878

Justice For All’s Save Uyghur Campaign strongly condemns the Cambodian government for the recent deportation of 23-year-old Uyghur asylum seeker Abdureqip Rahman. Rahman, who previously worked as a staff member at the Justice Ministry’s Kucha county branch, was later forced to serve in the ‘Xinjiang Public Security Bureau’, the agency responsible for enforcing the brutal oppression of the Uyghurs, and was sent to work inside a concentration camp in Kucha city in Chinese-occupied East Turkistan.

According to the Washington Post, Rahman had entrusted his escape to human smugglers, convinced it was his only option to leave China. In October 2023, he journeyed from his hometown of Kucha city of Aksu Prefecture in East Turkistan to Guangxi in southern China, then proceeded through Vietnam and crossed into Cambodia on November 3rd, covering a distance of approximately 2,300 miles.

On January 31st, the Cambodian authorities handed Rahman to the Chinese Embassy in Phnom Penh and was sent back to his hometown of Kucha on February 1, 2024, where he was interrogated by the Public Security Bureau. The Cambodian authorities deported Rahman to China, despite concerns for his safety and the risk of persecution. Reports indicate that he was investigated for alleged fraud and illegal border crossing, but these claims are widely viewed as a pretext for his deportation. The Chinese government has a documented history of detaining Uyghurs upon their return, raising serious concerns about Rahman’s well-being.

Mr. Abduweli Ayup, an Uyghur Activist based in Norway and founder of the Uyghurs rights groups ‘Uyghur Hjelp’, was the main contact between Rahman and the U.S. State Department, as well as the U.N. agency ‘International Organization for Migration’ (IOM), said that “Rahman’s tragedy implies that international organisations like IOM and the United Nations are too weak, too slow and ineffective to take immediate action to protect Uyghur refugees.”

China’s transnational repression targeting Uyghurs abroad is a chilling reality that cannot be ignored. Countries must not bow to China’s demands, as every Uyghur sent back to Chinese authorities faces a sealed fate of life-long imprisonment or execution. The international community must stand firm against such coercive tactics and protect the rights of those fleeing persecution.

Imam Abdul Malik Mujahid, President of Justice For All, stated, “The deportation of Abdureqip Rahman is a grave violation of human rights and a betrayal of the principles of asylum. We call on the international community to hold the Cambodian government accountable for its actions and to ensure the safety of all Uyghurs seeking refuge from persecution.”

Arslan Hidayat, Team Lead of the Save Uyghur Campaign, added, “Rahman’s case highlights the urgent need for global action against the systematic oppression of Uyghurs. We stand in solidarity with him and all Uyghurs who have been forced to flee their homeland, and we demand that governments respect the principle of non-refoulement.”

Justice For All urges the Cambodian government to reconsider its stance on Uyghur asylum seekers and to uphold its obligations under international law. We call for immediate action to protect those fleeing persecution and to ensure that their voices are heard.