April 10, 2008
Family fears worst for Uyghur accused of 'endangering national security.'
BANGKOK – As China deals with the fallout of protests in Tibet and alleged protests in neighboring Xinjiang province, the family of a Uyghur Christian fears he may be sentenced to death this month after officials accused him of endangering national security.
Officials closed Alimjan Yimit’s business last September and accused him of using it as a cover for “preaching Christianity among people of Uyghur ethnicity.” When they detained him on January 12, they told his family only that the arrest was a matter of “national security.” (See Compass Direct News, “Uyghur Christians Arrested, Jailed in Xinjiang, China,” February 11.)
In view of the recent crackdown on Tibetan protestors and an alleged protest in the Uyghur Autonomous Region of Xinjiang that reportedly saw 400 Uyghurs detained by late March, Yimit’s family fear he may be branded a separatist, a crime punishable by death.
Friends said a verdict is expected by the end of April.
Alimjan’s arrest followed that of another Uyghur Christian, Osman Imin, on November 19, 2007. Authorities placed Osman in criminal detention and accused him of assisting foreigners in illegal religious activities and revealing state secrets, according to China Aid Association.
Compass sources said authorities have arrested at least one other Uyghur Christian in Urumqi, the provincial capital, and another in the city of Kashgar, since the beginning of the year.
A Capital Crime
Alimjan, once a Muslim, converted to Christianity more than 10 years ago and became active in the growing Uyghur church.
Local sources said he is neither a separatist nor a terrorist but rather has constantly affirmed his loyalty to the Chinese government. In fact Alimjan and his wife sent their children to a Chinese- language school, a rare move in Xinjiang – where ethnic Uyghurs are often resented as Han Chinese culture becomes increasingly dominant.
Alimjan has also proved himself a successful and honest businessman, sources said.
In 1997 a U.S. company, the Xinjiang Taipingyang Nongye Gongsi, employed him as an interpreter. Impressed by his linguistic and technical skills, the company then offered him a full-time job at their premises in Hotan, southern Xinjiang (a town also known as Hetian).
Eventually Alimjan left the company in Hotan and moved back to Urumqi, where he was hired as project manager for the Xinjiang Jiaerhao Foodstuff Co.
During his employment with both foreign-owned companies, officials from the local State Security Bureau – responsible for matters of national security – regularly called Alimjan in for interrogation but forbade him to discuss the subject of these interrogations with anyone.
They also physically abused Alimjan, searched his house regularly and seized his personal computer. Alimjan made several complaints to the bureau’s headquarters in Urumqi, the provincial capital of Xinjiang, to no avail.
His arrest came as a shock to family and friends, who describe him as a gentle man with a simple faith, expressed firmly but quietly – a right guaranteed to him in the Chinese constitution.
Due to articles in the Xinjiang constitution that contradict China’s national constitution, it is illegal for Uyghurs to attend services at any government-approved Three Self Church in Xinjiang, forcing them to meet in unregistered house churches. Uyghur Bibles are not printed in China and are extremely difficult to obtain.
As family and friends await the outcome of Alimjan’s secretive trial, they hope for recognition of his loyalty and integrity, and acknowledgment that his expression of faith does not equate to a “crime against the state.”
Copyright 2008 Compass Direct News
