Thailand sends around 100 Uighur Turks 'back' to China

By CS Thana and Max Constant

BANGKOK

The Thai government has confirmed it has "repatriated" 90 of around 150 Uighur migrants it had been detaining to China, causing outrage in Turkey and among rights groups.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees expressed immediate alarm Thursday at the deportation of those it described as of "Turkic origin."

"While we are seeking further clarifications on what happened exactly, we are shocked by this deportation of some 100 people and consider it a flagrant violation of international law," Volker Turk, the UN refugee agency's Assistant High Commissioner for Protection said in a statement.

"I strongly urge the Thai authorities to investigate this matter and appeal to Thailand to honor its fundamental international obligations, notably the principle of non-refoulement, and to refrain from such deportations in the future," he added.

Turkey, meanwhile, criticized the Thai government for acting without consideration for the Uighur.

"Despite our numerous initiatives to related international organizations, we condemn Thailand’s improper action, which is against international humanitarian law," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The migrants were from a group of around 350 Uighur who had been rounded up in the Kingdom since October 2013, as they tried to cross its borders to Malaysia, Cambodia and beyond.

In Washington, the State Department condemned the deportation of the Uighur to China "where they could face harsh treatment and a lack of due process."

"This action runs counter to Thailand’s international obligations as well as its long-standing practice of providing safe haven to vulnerable persons," spokesman John Kirby said in a statement. "We further urge Chinese authorities to uphold international norms and to ensure transparency, due process, and proper treatment of these individuals."

While China identified the Muslims as from its Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, Turkey had welcomed them as its own.

"Anatolians have never rejected guests that came to their land for centuries," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tanju Bilgic said Friday.

"Turkey, with that understanding, holds its doors wide open to Uighur who want to come to our country."

Thai government spokesman Weerachon Sukondhapatipak told Anadolu Agency by phone on Wednesday that the Uighur had been deported "in accordance with protocol" as they had been determined by the government to have originated from China. 

Weerachon also confirmed that the government had repatriated 173 Uighur back to Turkey on July 2. 

On Wednesday, rights groups Human Rights Watch told Anadolu Agency that the number of those deported overnight could have been as high as 115.

"A majority were adults, but some were children," Sunai Phasuk, Human Rights Watch representative in Thailand, told Anadolu Agency.

There was no explanation for the discrepancy in figures, however most have been held in detention centers in Bangkok or in Songkhla in the country's south since their capture, making it difficult to track exact numbers.

"At least 50 Uighur remain in detention centers in Thailand, and we worry they might also be sent back to China," Phasuk added.

Many of them have claimed to have Turkish nationality.

Many Turks believe that Uighur are among a number of Turkic tribes that inhabit China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, and consider it to be part of Central Asia, not China.

Some of those repatriated back to Turkey July 2 belonged to a Uighur family who took Thailand to court in March, demanding that they be released from detention and allowed to "return home" to Turkey.

During the hearing, the couple produced photocopies of what their Thai lawyer - Worasit Piriyawiboon - claimed to be Turkish passports.

“They want to go to Turkey and we are ready to accept them," the Turkish Embassy’s First Counsellor Ahmet Idem Akay told Anadolu Agency at the time. 

"But [the release] is up to Thai authorities."

The Thai court ruled, however, that the prolonged detention was legal, but did not say which country – Turkey or China – they would eventually be sent back to.

On Wednesday, Piriyawiboon told Anadolu Agency that those still in detention wished to join their compatriots who have recently arrived in Turkey.

“There are still around 400 Uighur detained in [Thailand's] Songkhla province and other areas and their case is considered [by Thai authorities] to be a national security issue.”

Again, there was no explanation for the discrepancy between Piriyawiboon and Human Rights Watch numbers.

Piriyawiboon warned “China is now getting involved."

"Their case will be dealt through a negotiation process between China, Turkey and Thailand. Their case is considered a political case,” he said.

He added that the 173 now in Turkey had been allowed to leave after lengthy negotiations between Ankara and Bangkok.

“The United Nations acted as a facilitator in the negotiations. Their detention had no legal basis and was against human rights,” he said.

On Wednesday, Human Rights Watch called the deportation of the Uighur back to China a "clear violation." 

“We are still trying to find out details, but if confirmed it is a clear violation of the international law as the Uighur could face serious human rights abuses in China," Phasuk told Anadolu Agency.

“Thai authorities have often shown very little regard for humanitarian considerations when sending back people where they could face serious human rights violations, as has been the case in the past for Rohingya or Hmong,” he added.

Rights groups have said that Rohingya face abuse in Myanmar - thought to be state sanctioned - while Hmong have long been reported as being victimized by Laotian authorities.

Thailand, later defending the deportation, said it followed proper, humanitarian procedures. 

"Thai authorities have held regular talks on the matter [with China]. We have not done anything to favor anyone or violated any principle. We have followed proper procedures," Sukondhapatipak said. 

Overnight, crowds gathered outside of the Thai consulate in Istanbul as news broke that the Uighur were about to be deported.

Some broke into the building, from where they smashed windows and lowered the Southeast Asian country's flag.

The Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed the attack in a statement Thursday before sending out an alert to Thais living in Turkey warning of possible reprisals. 

Thailand’s junta leader-cum-Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said Thursday that the Thai embassy in Ankara may have to be temporarily shut.

"I ask that we look after the safety of the embassy staff first," Prayuth told reporters. "But if the situation gets worse then we might temporarily have to close the embassy in Turkey."

Thailand’s decision was also protested in Ankara, where police stopped a group from approaching the Thai Embassy, forcing them to gather at the entrance of the street where it is located.

The angry crowd tried unsuccessfully to pass the barricades set up by police, who at one point had to separate them from a woman they had surrounded, thinking she was a Chinese national.

Security was also beefed up around the Turkish Embassy in Bangkok in case of retaliation.

Uighur -- who constitute around 45 percent of the population of Xinjiang – have accused China of carrying out repressive policies that restrain their religious, commercial and cultural activities.

* Anadolu Agency correspondents Satuk Bugra Kutlugun in Ankara and Michael Hernandez in Washington contributed to this report.