The Thai delegation visiting Xinjiang should publicly press Chinese officials about their abuses against Uyghurs and seek unfettered access to the 40 Uyghurs the Thai government forcibly returned, Human Rights Watch said today.
Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Phumtham Wechayachai and Justice Minister Tawee Sodsong are expected to lead a delegation of Thai officials and journalists to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China between March 18 to 20, 2025. Thai authorities said that the officials intend to check on the condition of the 40 Uyghur men whose forced repatriation to China on February 27 triggered broad condemnation from United Nations agencies, foreign governments, and human rights groups.
"The Thai delegation visiting Xinjiang shouldn't take part in Chinese government choreography and image laundering, but instead report on how Uyghurs are really being treated," said Elaine Pearson, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. "The Thai government needs to start repairing its damaged reputation on rights for forcibly sending the men back to China by insisting on unfettered access to and publicly reporting on the condition of the 40 Uyghur men."
Both the Thai and Chinese governments have portrayed the deportation of the 40 Uyghur men as a benevolent act to reunite them with their families, and Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra repeatedly said that the Chinese government assured her that they would not be punished or mistreated. But past cases show that such Chinese government assurances lack credibility, Human Rights Watch said.
Uyghurs are Turkic-speaking Muslims, most of whom live in Xinjiang in China's northwest. The Chinese government has long been hostile to expressions of Uyghur identity. Since late 2016, the government of President Xi Jinping has intensified a widespread and systematic campaign of human rights violations against the Uyghur population that amounts to crimes against humanity.
Chinese authorities have arbitrarily detained and unjustly imprisoned Uyghurs, persecuted them for practicing their religion and culture, and subjected them to mass surveillance and forced labor. An estimated half million Uyghurs remain imprisoned as part of the ongoing crackdown, in which the authorities have routinely conflated everyday peaceful conduct, such as prayer or contacting relatives abroad, with terrorism and extremism. The authorities have also repeatedly intimidated Uyghurs living abroad to silence them.
Uyghurs deemed to have left China without official permission are viewed with intense suspicion, Human Rights Watch said. If returned, they are subject to detention, interrogation, torture, and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment.
In recent years, the Chinese government has sought to present an image of normalcy in Xinjiang, including by allowing some carefully selected Uyghurs to travel to or from the region under severe restrictions. Some Uyghurs living abroad have only been able to visit the region if they participate in a propaganda tour during which they are required to praise the government's Xinjiang policies.
The Thai government should press Chinese authorities to disclose the whereabouts of the 40 Uyghur men sent back from Thailand and to allow unhindered access to UN officials and diplomats to verify the Uyghurs' well-being. In addition, Thai authorities need to ensure there will be no further forced returns of the remaining Uyghurs in Thailand, Human Rights Watch said. The Thai government should grant Uyghur asylum seekers access to the UN refugee agency (UNHCR). Thailand should respect its obligations under international law regarding people in need of protection.
"Concerned governments should press China to provide unfettered access to Xinjiang both for diplomats and the media," Pearson said. "Monitoring the well-being of these 40 Uyghurs isn't a one-shot exercise but will require these governments to keep pushing for access."
