THURSDAY, March 28, 2024
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Did a fake village hide true story of the Uighurs' fate?

Did a fake village hide true story of the Uighurs' fate?

NATIONAL Security Council Secretary-General Anusit Kunakorn lamented the fact that he wasted time, money and resources travelling to China to examine the Potemkin village built for the Uighur Muslims who were deported from Thailand.

Did a fake village hide true story of the Uighurs’ fate?
  SUPALAK GANJANAKHUNDEE
THE NATION
 
NATIONAL Security Council Secretary-General Anusit Kunakorn lamented the fact that he wasted time, money and resources travelling to China to examine the Potemkin village built for the Uighur Muslims who were deported from Thailand. 
But human rights activists have taken with a pinch of salt his assertion that the repatriated Muslims are being treated appropriately because his account of their circumstances could not be verified.
Anusit visited China on July 15 at the invitation of Beijing officials to verify that the 109 repatriated Uighur Muslims were being treated well in China as promised. He returned on Sunday and reported that the Chinese were as good as their word. 
The mission was to confirm what the Thai authorities believed to be the good treatment China had provided the Turkic ethnic group after strong criticism and condemnation from the international community over their forced deportation.
At a press briefing on Monday, the security chief repeated what Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan and Anusit himself had said again and again: China guaranteed their safety and treated them in accordance with human rights principles and international practice.
Anusit said he met high-level Chinese officials and saw the rehabilitation centre in the Western province of Xinjiang’s Urumqi where he said economic development offered better lives for the Uighurs. The province has 20,000 mosques and 26 universities for the Muslim minority, he said.
Anusit did not say whether he remembered all of the 109 returned Uighurs but claimed he met a man called Abdullah Mudsmad (sic) – who is believed to be one of the 109 Uighurs. The man told the Thai official that he was lured to migrate from home for a better life. He sold his properties for the adventure before being arrested in Thailand’s Ubon Ratchathani and deported. The man promised Anusit he would teach his children not to think about leaving home.
All 109 returned Uighurs were held in the rehabilitation centre in Urumqi, preparing for the return to their community, according to Anusit. The men and women were housed separately and they were divided into groups according to their behaviour, he said. Each group was classified by colours: orange for those suspected of terrorism; blue for other crimes; and green for normal illegal migrants. 
“They are in the process of investigation and attitude adjustment before returning to normal lives or prosecution,” he said. Unless they had committed crime, they would be freed, he said. For those who had sold all their properties, the Chinese government would allocate lands for farming and housing.
In contrast to what the Thai officials had said earlier, Anusit said the Chinese government had not allowed any international organisations or representatives of foreign governments to see the Uighur. 
Only Thailand deserved the special privilege of meeting them, he said.
Anusit blamed mainstream and social media for reporting false information that might damage the country’s reputation and security. Strong criticism and condemnation from the international community was the result of international politics between China and Western countries. However, Thailand did its best in deporting the Uighurs, he said.
Anusit said the government was communicating with Chinese authorities on the remaining 60 Uighurs and promised to handle them with care to avoid international pressure.
As the public doubted his message, Anusit said he used his position as NSC secretary general – which expires at the end of September after his retirement – to receive credit for Thailand.
Human rights activists on social media said that as Anusit had failed to provide independent observers with full access to the Uighurs before their repatriation, it was difficult to verify and identify the people the Thai officials had met in China.
As long as there was no third party, the Thai and Chinese officials could say anything they wanted about the Uighurs as both sides had equal credibility on the matter and on human rights practices.
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