IPAC Letter Calling for Saudi Arabia to Block Forcible Return of Uyghurs to China
HH Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Riyadh
01 April 2022
Dear Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud,
We, Co-Chairs of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC), write to you to express our concern about the ongoing cases of Nurmemet Rozi and Hemdullah Abduweli.
Abduweli and Rozi, two men of Uyghur Muslim ethnicity originally from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, were both arrested on November 20, 2020 by the Saudi local police, while they were in Saudi Arabia for religious reasons. The arrest was allegedly carried out after the Chinese Embassy in Saudi Arabia had requested their extradition. We understand that Abduweli and Rozi are currently detained in Saudi Arabia and are at imminent risk of being forcibly returned to China. Additionally, it has come to our attention that acts of reprisal have been taken against family members of the two men.
The government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) is carrying out a global campaign of threats and intimidation against Uyghurs, Tibetans, Hong Kongers, Chinese dissidents and other activists abroad. Those extradited or deported to the PRC will not face a fair trial and are at severe risk of persecution, arbitrary detention and torture.
We urge you to oppose the forcible return of Abduweli, Rozi and their relatives, and to ensure that those targeted by the PRC government are protected from any threats, intimidation and harassment at the hands of the PRC government in your jurisdiction.
As legislators from democratic countries across the world, we have taken great interest in this case and stand ready to advocate on their behalf.
Yours sincerely,
Lucy Akello, Member of the Ugandan Parliament
Reinhard Bütikofer, Member of the European Parliament
Michael Brand, Member of the German Bundestag
Malcolm Byrne, Member of the Irish Seanad
Rt Hon Sir Iain Duncan Smith, Member of the UK House of Commons
Uffe Elbæk, Member of the Danish Folketing
Ninong Ering, Member of the Arunachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly, India
Pavel Fischer, Member of the Czech Senate
André Gattolin, Member of the French Senate
Garnett Genuis, Member of the Canadian House of Commons
Baroness (Helena) Kennedy, Member of the UK House of Lords
Elisabet Lann, Deputy Mayor of Gothenburg, Sweden
Tom van der Lee, Member of the Dutch House of Representatives
Miriam Lexmann, Member of the European Parliament
Fabian Molina, Member of the National Council of Switzerland
Simon O’Connor, Member of the New Zealand Parliament
Žygimantas Pavilionis, Member of the Lithuanian Seimas
Dovilė Šakalienė, Member of the Lithuanian Seimas
Cătălin Teniță, Member of the Assembly Deputies of Romania
Barry Ward, Member of the Irish Seanad
CO-CHAIRS OF THE INTER-PARLIAMENTARY ALLIANCE ON CHINA (IPAC)
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