CHINA : ARBITRARY DETENTION OF FIVE INDIVIDUALS LIVING IN XINJIANG UIGHUR AUTONOMOUS REGION

The International League Against Arbitrary Detention urges the Government of China to take all the necessary actions to implement the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention Opinion No. 2/2024 concerning Alavedi Buvacir, Hudavedi Bumeyrem, Abudukelimu Alimu, Abuduli Aibibu and Bahaguli Aibibu, asking the Government of China to immediately and unconditionally release them and to accord them an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations in accordance with international law.

Read the full WGAD Opinion concerning Alavedi Buvacir, Hudavedi Bumeyrem, Abudukelimu Alimu, Abuduli Aibibu and Bahaguli Aibibu: Opinion No. 2/2024.

ARRESTED WITHOUT KNOWING THE REASONS

The five individuals of this opinion are all Chinese citizens living in Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region. Ms Buvacir and Ms Bumeyrem are mother and daughter and were arrested in 2019. Mr Alimu has been arrested in 2017. Mr Aibibu and Ms Aibibu are father and daughter. Mr Aibibu was arrested in 2017 and sent to a re-education camp before being briefly released and re-arrested in 2020. Ms Aibibu was arrested in 2017 and 2019, she was sentenced to 12 years imprisonment for sending money by bank transfer to her father. The source alleged that the five individuals have been arrested without warrants and that no reasons for their arrests were given. Since then, they remain deprived of liberty incommunicado.

The Working Group transmitted the allegations to the Government of China, which choose not to respond.

ARRESTED WITHOUT WARRANTS AND HELD INCOMMUNICADO

The five individuals were arrested without being informed of the reasons for their arrests or without a warrant. The Government of China did not respond about these allegations. For this reason, the Working Group found the situation in violation of article 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the principles 2 and 10 of the Body of Principles.

Also, the sources alleged that the five individuals have been held incommunicado since their arrests. By doing so, the individuals were not able to communicate with their families or to consult a lawyer which can be considered as an enforced disappearance and so constitutes a violation of the article 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as concluded by the Working Group.

Moreover, their situation led to an impossibility for them to challenge their detention before an appropriate court. Hence, the Working Group found that articles 6 and 8 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights were as they were placed outside the protection of the law.

Therefore, the Working Group found that the deprivation of liberty of these five individuals were all arbitrary under category I.

DEPRIVED FROM THEIR RIGHT TO CHALLENGE THEIR DETENTIONS AND RIGHT TO A FAIR TRIAL

Except the fact that Ms Aibibu was reportedly sentenced to 12 years of imprisonment, there is little evidence about the exact charges and the legal basis concerning the arrests of the five individuals. The source alleged that the detention of Uighur ethnic people was arbitrary because mostly based on a vague counterterrorism legislation. The Working Group during its previous visits in China in 1997 and 2004 raised this issue and warned that it could lead to forms of arbitrary detention.

In the present case, the situation of the five individuals held incommunicado without being charged or tried, their lack of access to counsel and indefinite detentions represent a violation of articles 9 and 10 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and principles 10, 11, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 32 (1), 37 and 38 of the Body of Principles.

Moreover, the sources alleged that there is credible information of torture and ill-treatment against the five individuals. However, the Working Group is unable to acknowledge this due to a lack of information.

Therefore, the Working Group found that the breaches of the fair trial of these five individuals were of such gravity as to render their deprivation of liberty arbitrary under the category III.

DISCRIMINATION BASED ON ETHNICITY AND RELIGION

The Working Group recalled that different United Nations Bodies have already shown that the situation in Xinjiang regarding the Uighur population is particularly concerning. The individuals concerned in this case are all ordinary people that is to say not opponents, human rights activists or else but are all Uighurs, a Chinese ethnic minority.

The source alleged that the reason for which the five individuals had been arrested was because of their uighur ethnicity. The Working Group  stated that the source sufficiently demonstrated that these individuals were detained on discriminatory basis.

Therefore, the Working Group found that the detention of the five individuals was arbitrary under the category V. The Working Group also referred the present case to the Special Rapporteur on minority issues and the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, for further consideration.

CONCLUSIONS OF THE UN WORKING GROUP AGAINST ARBITRARY DETENTION

In light of the foregoing, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention considered that the detentions of Alavedi Buvacir, Hudavedi Bumeyrem, Abudukelimu Alimu, Abuduli Aibibu and Bahaguli Aibibu were arbitrary and fell under categories I, III and V because the deprivations of liberty of Alavedi Buvacir, Hudavedi Bumeyrem, Abudukelimu Alimu, Abuduli Aibibu and Bahaguli Aibibu were in contravention of articles 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The Working Group recommended that the Government of China take the steps necessary to remedy the situation of Alavedi Buvacir, Hudavedi Bumeyrem, Abudukelimu Alimu, Abuduli Aibibu and Bahaguli Aibibu without delay and bring it into conformity with the relevant international norms. The Working group considered that, taking into account all circumstances of the case, the appropriate remedy would be to release them immediately and accord them an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations, in accordance with international law.