Uighur Doctoral Student Disappears; Family Concerned She Is In Re-Education Camp

Guligeina Tashimaimaiti, a Uighur Ph.D. student, writer and scholar returned from a trip to Malaysia on December 26, 2017 and her family has not seen nor heard from her since. CCS has written the Party Secretary of the Xinjiang (East Turkistan) Uighur Autonomous Region requesting her release and her safety.

Dear Secretary Quanguo:

The Committee of Concerned Scientists is an independent organization of scientists, physicians, engineers and scholars devoted to the protection and advancement of human rights and scientific freedom for colleagues all over the world.

We write to express our grave concerns for Guligeina Tashimaimaiti, a Uighur Ph.D. student, writer and scholar who has not been heard from since December 26, 2017 when she returned from Malaysia to her home in Yili, Xinjiang (East Turkistan) Uighur Autonomous Region. Her family is concerned that she may have been sent to a re-education camp.

We urge you to provide information to her family as to where Guligeina Tashimaimaiti is being held, and why. Unless she has been charged with an internationally recognized crime for which there is credible evidence, we further urge you to release Guligeina Tashimaimaiti immediately and unconditionally. If she is charged with a crime, her trial must be in line with international standards.

While she remains in detention, we urge you to ensure that she has access to her family and adequate legal representation, and that she is not tortured or ill-treated.

As her colleagues and fellow scholars, we urge you to seek and provide to us information on her whereabouts and legal status and unless she is charged with a legitimate criminal offense, to assure that she is released and allowed to resume her studies.

We thank you for your attention to this most serious matter, and we look forward to receiving your response.

Sincerely,
Joel L. Lebowitz, Paul H. Plotz, Walter Reich, Eugene M. Chudnovsky, Alexander Greer
Co-Chairs, Committee of Concerned Scientists

cc:
Ambassador Cui Tiankai,
Embassy of the People’s Republic of China
3505 International Place, NW
Washington, DC 20008
Phone: 202 495 2266 I Fax: 202 495 2138
Email: chinaembpress_us@mfa.gov.cn