In a damning indictment of China’s policies under Xinjiang Communist Party chief Ma Xingrui, Uyghur exiles have accused Beijing of extending its repression of the Turkic Muslim minority beyond Xinjiang’s borders. They allege that Ma, despite his technocratic credentials, has intensified the systemic persecution of Uyghurs through forced detentions, cultural erasure, and asset seizures.
“Under Ma’s watch, arbitrary detentions have persisted, and forced labor has expanded, especially in Belt and Road projects,” said Abduweli Ayup, a Norway-based Uyghur activist. Speaking to VOA, Ayup highlighted chilling cases of Uyghurs who fled Xinjiang only to face persecution in other parts of China or abroad.
According to Ayup, 240 Uyghurs who had sought refuge in cities like Shanghai and Beijing were forcibly returned to Xinjiang, where their fate remains unknown. “The crackdown under Ma Xingrui has no geographical boundaries,” he said. Ayup’s revelations come amid growing international condemnation of China’s actions, which the United States and Canada have classified as genocide.
Observers note that under Ma’s leadership, the detention of over one million Uyghurs has morphed from so-called “re-education camps” into long-term imprisonments. Rights groups report that forced labor has become a hallmark of the Belt and Road Initiative, with Uyghurs coerced into contributing to infrastructure projects intended to expand China’s global influence.
In response, Liu Pengyu, a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, dismissed the allegations, stating, “China is a law-based country. Judicial departments handle cases in accordance with law.” Yet, Uyghur leaders argue that Beijing’s claims of legality mask the reality of widespread human rights abuses.
Even beyond Xinjiang, Uyghurs face unrelenting surveillance and persecution. Irpan Yarmemet, a content producer, was detained in Shanghai and sent back to Xinjiang, where his current status is unknown. Yarmemet’s crime? Traveling to Turkey eight years ago for his education.
“His hopes of staying safe by avoiding Xinjiang were dashed,” said Ayup. Similar fates have befallen countless Uyghurs who have dared to move beyond Xinjiang, only to find themselves ensnared in the regime’s tightening grip.
For many, the cost of leaving China has proven equally devastating. Exile activist Madina Mehmet, now in the Netherlands, recounted how her family in Xinjiang has been systematically targeted. Her sister, Mihray Mehmet, was sentenced to seven years in prison on baseless charges of “terrorist connections,” leaving her young children motherless.
“They’ve committed no crime,” said Madina. “My sister’s only ‘offense’ was wearing a headscarf and studying in Egypt.”
Ma’s repression has not spared even the most affluent and prominent Uyghurs. Rehmutulla Semet, a real estate magnate and vice chair of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Xinjiang, was sentenced to 19 years in prison in 2021. The government seized his assets, valued at over $400 million, and auctioned them off, including his iconic Gold Coin Hill Building in Urumqi.
“This is a systematic effort to dismantle Uyghur wealth and influence,” said Ayup. Semet’s case underscores a broader pattern of economic dispossession aimed at neutralizing Uyghur leaders.
Despite China’s denials, Uyghur activists are demanding international accountability. Ayup, Mehmet, and other exiles are urging governments to impose harsher sanctions on Chinese officials, prosecute those responsible for crimes against humanity, and provide greater protections for Uyghur refugees.
“Justice for Uyghurs is long overdue,” said Mehmet. Her defiance echoes across a diaspora determined to expose Beijing’s atrocities.
