Call for Urgency Resolution on Uyghur Extraditions From Cambodia

http://www.unpo.org/

Thursday, 07 January 2010

(CAAI News Media)

Graham Watson MEP has called on China to respect the human rights of twenty extradited Uyghurs whose whereabouts continue to remain unknown

Below is a press release issued by the office of Mr. Graham Watson MEP:

"Cambodia's sneaky decision to extradite twenty Uyghurs to China is a disgrace. The UNHCR was still in the process of investigating their cases: it should have had the chance to finish its work.

"China must now agree to allow representatives of the international community to be present at the trials of these poor people. It has a moral responsibility to treat them fairly, and should guarantee that there will be no executions.

"The Cambodian government should give a proper account of why it chose to act in this way. It should also promise that the two Uyghurs who are currently missing will not be extradited when they are found.

"Both Cambodia and China must understand that if they act brutally and by stealth, their own reputations will rightly suffer.

"I am now seeking an urgency resolution in the European Parliament on this matter to show the seriousness with which we treat it."

Note: To download the press release, please click here. (PDF Format, 76kb)

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Speaking on hearing of Mr. Watson’s statement, the President of the World Uyghur Congress, Ms. Rebiya Kadeer, spoke of the “renewed strength I have gained on hearing that the European Parliament continues to uphold the human rights of Uyghurs where others have failed - Mr. Watson’s statement and his decision to pursue an emergency resolution sends a unequivocal message to Phnom Penh and Beijing that their actions will not be consigned to the past. I hope that it will also encourage two missing Uyghurs to come forward and tell the world their stories”

Reacting to the latest international response in support of the extradited Uyghurs, Mr. Marino Busdachin welcomed “the first concrete step to be taken that demonstrates the international community’s commitment to upholding human dignity…Mr. Watson’s words – and more importantly – his actions, will I hope spur others to act.”

Mr. Watson joins parliamentarians from all over the world strongly criticizing the extradition decision. Writing on Christmas Eve, New Zealand Member of Parliament, Mr. Keith Locke, urged the government to “join the international condemnation of Cambodia for its callous and illegal deportation of the Uighers.” This was a deportation that “flies in the face of all refugee law” Mr. Locke’s noted.

Mr. Michael Danby MP of the Australian Parliament had earlier condemned the extradition as an “abhorrent decision” and fateful for the Uyghurs who were now trapped in a process “likely [to] end with their execution.” Cambodia’s international reputation had been done irreparable damage by their decision to bow to Chinese pressure Mr. Danby concluded.

Phnom Penh had paid little heed to urgent public appeals from politicians across the political spectrum in North America and Europe that were issued in the hours leading up to the Uyghurs’ midnight deportation.

As fears had grown for their safety, Mr. Wayne Marston MP of Canada had publicized his belief that any extradition “clearly puts these Uyghurs at the severe risk for execution” and that Phnom Penh must “allow time for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees to resolve the matter to the benefit of all parties.”

Senator Marco Perduca of the Italian Senate voiced his concern that the extradition “would throw them [twenty asylum-seeking Uyghurs] into the jaws of a judicial system that is acknowledged to be partial, which still supports the death penalty, and which has already led to the execution of at least eight Uyghurs in recent months after seriously flawed trials.”

These fears are growing more real. It is believed that the twenty-two Uyghurs held incriminating evidence of human rights abuses perpetrated by Chinese state security agencies against Uyghur protesters in East Turkestan. Previous trials of Uyghurs have not been considered fair and have followed

Two Uyghurs remain missing after evading the round-up that culminated in the extradition on 19 December 2009 and which preceded the visit to Cambodia of China’s Vice President Xi Jinping and the conclusion of trade and investment agreements totally $1.2 billion.