3 Uyghurs who were detained in Thailand for over a decade have been resettled in Canada
BANGKOK (AP) — Three Uyghur men who spent over a decade in Thai detention were resettled in Canada in April, Thai lawmakers and activists confirmed, months after Thailand drew international condemnation for sending 40 other Uyghurs back to China, where they feared further detention, torture and even death.
The three made their way to Canada during Thailand's Songkran festival weekend in April, said Kannavee Suebsang, a lawmaker who has advocated on behalf of the Uyghurs, and Chalida Tajaroensuk, president of the People's Empowerment Foundation, a Thai human rights group that works closely with migrants and refugees.
The Uyghurs are a Turkic, majority Muslim ethnicity from China's northwestern Xinjiang region. After decades of conflict over suppression of their cultural identity, Beijing launched a brutal crackdown on the Uyghurs that some Western governments have called a genocide. China has accused the Uyghurs held in Thailand of being terrorists without providing evidence.
The men had been in detention since 2014 as part of a group of 300 Uyghurs who were caught near Thailand's border with Malaysia after having fled China. For more than a decade, the fate of this group kept Thailand in a tense push-and-pull between China and the U.S.
Thailand deported 109 detainees to China against their will, prompting an international outcry that saw violent demonstrations against Thailand in 2015. Another group of 173 Uyghurs, mostly women and children, were sent to Turkey, leaving 53 Uyghurs in Thai detention. Five of this group died while waiting, including children.
Thai officials began secretly discussing plans to deport the Uyghurs as early as December last year, while publicly denying any such plans up until just days before 40 were sent back in February. The deportation prompted outrage, and led U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio to issue a strong condemnation and place travel restrictions on top Thai officials.
The three men were likely spared from forced repatriation because they were dual citizens of Kyrgyzstan and China, said Suebsang. Since they did not have any Chinese identification on them when they were initially detained, Thai immigration authorities held them separately from the larger group.
The Canadian embassy in Bangkok did not respond to a request for comment.
When asked by reporters whether Thailand had sent any Uyghurs to Canada, Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai said Monday he would need to check with relevant authorities. He said all Chinese Uyghurs had already been sent back to China, except those who are serving their jail terms in Thailand.
There remain five Uyghurs in Thailand, who are serving out jail sentences for an attempt to escape. An activist with knowledge of the situation, who asked to be anonymous out of fear of retribution, said they are concerned the Thai government could grant the men early release to speed up their return to China.
Phumtham also said if the remaining Uyghurs have a refugee status, and there is a third country willing to accept them, Thailand can send them there.
Chalida, the advocate who works closely with the Uyghurs, said they are pushing for the men to be recognized as refugees by United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and resettled in a third country.
'The Uyghurs are extremely at risk if they are sent back,' she said. 'I'd like to call on the Thai government to facilitate the process and allow them to meet with UNHCR.'
During their years in detention, advocates and relatives said the men were fed poorly, kept in overcrowded concrete cells with few toilets, and denied sanitary goods like toothbrushes or razors. They were forbidden direct contact with relatives, lawyers and international organizations, and received visits from Sheikhul Islam, an official Islamic organization close to the Thai authorities. United Nations human rights experts said that the treatment of the detainees may have violated international law in a February 2024 letter sent to the Thai government.
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AP reporter Jintamas Saksornchai contributed to this report.
Huizhong Wu, The Associated Press
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