Interview with the chair of national Uyghur society

Rozimuhammed Abdulbakiev is the head of Ittipak, the national society of Uyghurs in Kyrgyzstan. Many Uyghurs live in exile in the former Soviet republic, after fleeing the heavy-handed Chinese state repression of their activities, labelled as "nationalist" by Beijing, in their native Xinjiang Province, a vast region that occupies a sixth of China's land mass. Rights groups cite a serious rise in human rights abuses against the Uyghur minority of northwest China, while Beijing has claimed to be faced by "religious extremist forces" and "violent terrorists" in the region for more than a decade. Uyghurs in Kyrgyzstan say they face discrimination, given Bishkek's desire to remain on good terms with its giant neighbour. Many say they have suffered human rights abuses at the hands of the Kyrgyz authorities, including deportation to China. QUESTION: What are the main goals of your organisation? ANSWER: Ittipak has several main goals, including support for an open society in Kyrgyzstan, the protection of human rights and, of course, the preservation and development of Uyghur culture and language. We want peace and ethnic harmony in Kyrgyzstan and we try to contribute to this integration process. Q: What sort of discrimination do Uyghurs in Kyrgyzstan suffer from? A: One of the main problems Uyghurs face is that some mass media and government officials wrongly label us as criminals and terrorists. It is bad, because crime and good deeds do not have a nationality. If an article showing Uyghurs in a negative light is published in a newspaper, immediately problems occur in everyday life and many ordinary Uyghurs feel it. Another issue is the Uyghur language. During Soviet times Uyghurs here did not have the chance to learn their own language. Therefore, the majority of Uyghurs in the north of Kyrgyzstan studied in Russian schools and some of them do not speak Uyghur at all, while in the south of the country, the majority of Uyghurs studied in Uzbek schools, and view Uzbek as their native language. Concerning Uyghurs in Isyk-kul and Naryn oblasts [regions], Uyghurs studied in Kyrgyz schools and now they speak in Kyrgyz. Q: Beijing has labelled Ittipak a separatist organisation. Is this the case? A: We believe that there is a totalitarian regime in the PRC [People's Republic of China] and anyone who disagrees with the Chinese government policy is considered a separatist. We understand we are citizens of Kyrgyzstan, but at the same time the reality of the suffering of Uyghur people [in China] is not a matter of indifference to us. It is natural that we cannot keep silent about genocide and the oppression of the Uyghur people in the XUAR (Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region). Uyghurs are not Han Chinese and they had their own state and autonomy in the past. Uyghurs continue to face oppression in the XUAR: the mass resettlement of the Han Chinese from central regions to the XUAR; the limitation of the Uyghur birth rate and denial of our language and cultural rights. Eastern Turkistan, where we come from, was occupied by communist China in 1949; therefore we think that Uyghurs have the right to self-determination. This is naturally interpreted by Beijing as separatism. Q: What sort of problems do Uyghurs newly arrived from the XUAR face when they arrive in Kyrgyzstan? A: Kyrgyzstan has a common border with China and there are many Uyghurs from the XUAR here now. I know that they have many problems, but unfortunately few of them come to our office because every contact with us is considered by the Chinese authorities as a contact with a "separatist" organisation, and people who do come here will have problems at home [in the XUAR]. However, some people visit us discreetly and then we explain the laws, the rules for staying in Kyrgyzstan and answer questions concerning refugee status. The main problem faced by such Uyghurs is that they come here seeking asylum in a third country for different reasons. Some of them get help from UNHCR [the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees].