MANY questions surround the fate of Chinese Uighur Muslims sent to ‘education’ camps run by Beijing, apparently to deradicalise Xinjiang’s majority Turkic ethnic group. Among them are Chinese Muslim women married to Pakistani men, who have been separated from their families. There has been considerable criticism of Beijing’s treatment of its Uighur population, with claims that the People’s Republic is trying to change the demographics of the region by settling Han Chinese. China insists it is countering ‘radicalisation’ in Xinjiang. The UN has criticised China for running a “massive internment camp” for Uighur citizens, and Uighur activists say ‘deradicalisation’ is being used as an excuse to make them forsake their religion and culture, and to embrace the Chinese ‘mainstream’. Over 1m Uighurs are said to be interned in the camps, a figure Chinese officials have contested. In response to the criticism, China has recently opened the ‘education’ centres to foreign diplomats and journalists. Government officials say the camps will not be closed down, but the number of people being put through the re-education programme will be reduced.

While Beijing may have a genuine problem with extremism — Xinjiang has been restive for years — holding people in such camps and ‘guiding’ them towards renouncing their faith and culture is not the way to address it. China needs to be more transparent about the treatment of its native Uighur population, as such anti-extremism measures may only backfire and further alienate Xinjiang’s Muslims. Moreover, considering the close ties between Islamabad and Beijing, Pakistan needs to work with China through diplomatic channels to resolve the issue of Chinese spouses of Pakistani citizens. Splitting up families is unacceptable, and there are reports that at least 200 spouses of Pakistani men are missing, and are most likely in the re-education centres. The government must make greater efforts to reunite the women with their families, while the Chinese state should rethink its approach to the Xinjiang issue in a manner that does not violate fundamental rights.

Published in Dawn, January 8th, 2019