The family of a Uyghur individual, among the dozens feared to have been forcefully deported from Thailand to China, has strongly denounced the decision as “shameful.” This deportation occurred despite a UN statement warning of a “real risk of torture” for those being returned to China. Thailand disregarded protests from the UN refugee agency, EU, and US, and deported 40 Uyghurs who had been in detention in Thailand for a decade, claiming they chose to return to their “normal lives” with their families.
However, speaking to the Guardian, the family of one of those reportedly deported asserts it is “impossible” that their loved ones would voluntarily return to China, a country lacking freedoms and under constant government surveillance. Mihriman Muhammed, who fled China in 2014 after facing religious and ethnic persecution along with her family, criticized Thailand’s decision, emphasizing that the Uyghurs’ families in China are well aware of the hardships they face. Her husband, Polat, has been detained in Thailand since their separation.
The Uyghurs, a primarily Muslim Turkic-speaking ethnic group from China’s Xinjiang region, have suffered religious and ethnic persecution, with allegations of torture and the incarceration of over a million individuals in detention camps. China denies these accusations.
Muhammed shared a poignant exchange of messages between her daughter and Polat, highlighting her daughter’s yearning for her father’s presence and Polat’s promises to look after her. Despite the Thai government’s assurances that repatriated Uyghurs would be safe, Muhammed and other families remain skeptical, fearing deportation could lead to imprisonment or worse.
Thailand stated it received guarantees from China that the deported Uyghurs would receive care and not face mistreatment. The Chinese embassy in Thailand described those repatriated as “illegal border crossers,” not refugees, and promised reintegration support, which raises concerns given the association of “vocational training” with China’s detention camps and forced labor programs.
This situation underlines the plight of Uyghurs and the broader issue of their safety and human rights, especially in the context of their treatment by the Chinese government and the actions taken by other countries like Thailand.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/mar/03/thailand-condemned-for-shameful-mass-deportation-of-uyghur-refugees-to-china
