Arrested by Chinese police, never charged and not heard of again
by Alena Eis, News Editor
ARRESTED BY Chinese police, never charged and not heard of again. This is the fateof the brother of a Manchester Metropolitan University student, who has disappeared following protests in the Xinjiang province, along with thousands of others.
Chinese Government control over media, internet clampdowns, re-education through forced labour and detainment of dissenters are widely known and have been extensively written about during the Olympic Games in Beijing this summer. What makes the case of Dilixiati Paerhati stand out though is that he was not involved in any protest movements but a law-abiding citizen, in support of the Chinese Government. The Paerhati brothers are members of the Uighur ethnic minority, Muslims who have repeatedly faced persecution by the Chinese Government.
Originally at home in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region, young Uighur workers began being drafted to work in far away Government factories in Guangdong province in early May, as part of a Government initiative to encourage migration from poorer Western to more prosperous Eastern provinces. In the night of June 25, two Uighur workers were killed by a mob of the Han majority prevalent throughout the country, though some, including Han witnesses, claim fatalities were in the thirties. According to rumours the mob was incited by rapes of some Han women at the hands of Uighur men, though this has not been confirmed.
Days later Uighurs in Xinjiang instigated a thousands strong protest, which led to what has been described as the worst race riots in modern Chinese history. 197 were killed, many of them Han ‘slaughtered’ my Uighurs in retaliation. Other fatalities were caused by fights with police, who used batons, tear gas and water hoses to control protesters, while leaked videos show streets darkened from the smoke of burning cars, bodies lying on the sidewalks.
Dilixiati Paerhati was not involved in the protests. He did not take to the streets to rally for Government protection of transplanted workers or join the ensuing riots. The reason he was arrested in the aftermath of the protests was that he, together with his brother Dilimulati ‘Oyghar’ Paerhati, ran a social networking website, which included information on local amenities and a messageboard; the messageboard was used by organisers of the protest to advertise their demonstration. When Paerhati first saw the message he “deleted everything because it is forbidden in China and reported it to police,” said his brother Oyghar, who studies International Business management at Manchester Metropolitan. “[Police] said ‘no worries, no problem’.”
Days later the message appeared again, and Paerhati deleted and reported it once more. Yet on July 24 Paerhati was arrested, under the allegation that “he must be responsible for the demonstration because it was on his website.” He remained in custody for nine days during a police investigation, following which he was released and told there was “no problem” once again.
Yet on August 7 he was taken to the police station a second time, and has not been seen or heard of again since. “We haven’t had any contact with my brother,” said Oyghar, adding that his family did not even know where his brother was held.
“My brother didn’t do anything… this guy was honest. He reported twice to police and told them to be careful. If my brother wrote [the message] then yes, it would be our fault. But we have always protected Chinese Government policy, and never write against them, no propaganda.
“We’d never, never do anything against Chinese policy and Chinese government.”
Dilixiati Paerhati, 28, was supposed to get married before the riots but the family rescheduled the wedding because of the protests and unrest in the area. The new date was set for August 17, 10 days after his arrest.
Oyghar was meant to return home for the wedding, for the first time since 2005. But when news of his brother’s arrest spread, he was told by family friends, “please don’t come, you will be arrested.”
“When I go it would get dangerous,” said Oyghar, who is co-owner of the website and has since taken up his brother’s cause with human rights organisation Amnesty International.
“Once a Chinese citizen talks to Amnesty International, they don’t accept that. I’m dangerous when I go to China. I’m 100 per cent sure I will have problems with Chinese Government.
“I didn’t do anything. It’s not illegal to protect your human rights.”
Oyghar had previously refused invitations to join protest movements against the Chinese Government, both in Manchester and Berlin, Germany, where he studied for his undergraduate degree. “I said no, it’s not my way. I’m punished even though I love the Chinese Government.
“Despite me and my brother never [being] involved [in] any Uighur organisation in our life, and protect and respect Chinese authority, we are still [being punished] by the Chinese Government at the moment.”
He added that fellow Chinese students in Manchester often refused to believe what he told them about his brother, pointing out the difference between the Beijing Government and local, autonomous government.
“I thought I was Chinese, but after the riot, I know I’m not Chinese. I changed my mind, a minority is always a minority.”
Oyghar added that he had filed for Chinese citizenship, but that “after the Chinese unfair
treatment during the riots I feel we will be never become Chinese citizens whatever [we] do for [the] Chinese. We are always Uighur.”
Yet while he could face prosecution upon returning to China and had no plans on moving back home in the immediate future, Oyghar maintained that his family “has no problem at all, they are very safe; it’s just my brother.
“I demand that they please release my brother as soon as possible.”
He added: “All Uighur are very disappointed with governments, especially [the] USA, European Union and United Kingdom. Nobody is doing anything to help us. We hope for EU, UK, US to protect my people and put some pressure on Chinese Government to release prisoners.”
Amnesty International UK spokesperson Steve Ballinger said: “Amnesty supporters around the world are writing to the Chinese authorities, urging them to respect Dilixiati Paerhati’s human rights. Officials should tell his family where he is being held, let them see him, and guarantee that he is not being ill-treated. And unless he’s going to be charged and put on trial, they should release Dilixiati Paerhati immediately.”
Source: http://www.student-direct.co.uk/2009/10/arrested-by-chinese-police-never-charged-and-not-heard-of-again/
