Thai delegation visits Xinjiang to address concerns about Uyghur mistreatment

A delegation of Thai officials and media representatives arrived in China’s northwestern Xinjiang region on Wednesday to address concerns regarding the mistreatment of 40 Uyghurs who were deported from Thailand last month.

According to Reuters, Thailand Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said in Bangkok that the delegation’s mission was to reassure the public.

Thailand conducted the deportation in a secretive pre-dawn operation, which drew strong criticism from Western contries. Last week, the US imposed visa sanctions on unnamed Thai officials in response to the deportation.

Rights organisations have accused Beijing of widespread abuses against the Uyghurs, a predominantly Muslim ethnic minority of approximately 10 million people in Xinjiang.

However, Beijing denies these allegations and claims that Western countries are interfering and spreading falsehoods.

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The Thai government, which said the Uyghurs were deported after spending a decade in detention, has consistently said it received assurances from China regarding their safety.

According to Reuters, Canada and the US had offered to resettle the Uyghurs who had been returned to China, but that Bangkok feared upsetting China.

Thailand said it had received no concrete offers, however.

The 40 people deported were from a group of 300 Uyghurs who fled China and were arrested in 2014 in Thailand. Some were sent back to China, others to Turkey and the rest kept in Thai custody until last month’s deportation.

“If any country wants anything more or wants clarity, we are happy to provide it … there is nothing we cannot disclose. It only depends on time,” Paetongtarn was quoted as saying.

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Her government said on Tuesday that only five of the 40 Uyghurs will be made available during the visit.

China played down the significance of the mission, giving no details.

At a regular briefing on Wednesday, the Chinese foreign ministry’s spokesperson, Mao Ning, reiterated that the repatriation had been a “normal law enforcement cooperation” with Thailand. She added that the rights of those concerned were being observed according to international laws.

Among the 40 deported Uyghurs, most have already returned home, while a few who were previously ill were still receiving treatment in hospitals, Thailand’s defence ministry said in a separate statement on Wednesday, citing a briefing from Chinese officials.

The delegation, accompanied by officials from China’s public security ministry, was expected to form two groups, according to Thai government spokesperson Jirayu Houngsub.

One would visit the Uyghur returnees at their “private residences” about 100-200 km (60-125 miles) from the city of Kashgar, on Wednesday afternoon.

The other group would speak to Uyghurs more than 500 km away via a video call, and also visit local villages, a mosque and speak with Islamic religious leaders, Jirayu said.

With inputs from agencies