China imposes strict travel restrictions on Uyghurs

Sharjah 24: In a new report released Monday, Human Rights Watch says the Chinese government has eased travel curbs on Uyghurs but continues to impose strict controls on those who seek to travel abroad or visit family members living in Xinjiang.

Uyghurs are a Turkic ethnic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the general region of Central Asia and East Asia. The Uyghurs are recognised as the titular nationality of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in Northwest China. They are one of China's 55 officially recognised ethnic minorities

More than one million Uyghurs and other Muslims detained

Beijing stands accused of detaining more than a million Uyghurs and other Muslims in its northwestern region, in a campaign that the United Nations has said may constitute "crimes against humanity".

Authorities have detained Uyghurs with overseas connections and confiscated their travel documents since a crackdown in the mid-2010s, according to researchers, campaigners and members of the Uyghur diaspora.

The HRW report says officials have now begun returning some passports and permitting applications for international travel, but retain "severe restrictions, conditions and controls" on those who do.

Severe restrictions

Uyghurs must disclose the purpose of overseas trips, return by a certain date and promise not to criticise the Chinese government while abroad, according to the report.

It says they are rarely permitted to travel with family members and often face interrogation on returning to China.

The report also states that Uyghurs visiting China on foreign passports often face lengthy waits for visas, are questioned by authorities and prohibited from staying overnight with relatives.

The report was based on interviews with 23 Uyghurs outside China, and Chinese government documents.

Detention camps

Xinjiang's detention camps are allegedly rife with violence, sexual assault, forced labour and political indoctrination. China denies the accusations and says the facilities were voluntarily training centres that have been closed since attendees "graduated".

The United States has branded Beijing's treatment of Uyghurs a "genocide", and the UN rights office (OHCHR) said in August that "problematic" policies persist in Xinjiang, two years after its report cited possible crimes against humanity there.