Ikram Nurmehmet, 32, appeared on trial at Ürümqi people’s intermediary court on 27 October and is accused of organising “terrorist” activities and participating in an “East Turkestan separatist” group, sources close to him told the Guardian.
Chinese authorities blame the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, which once advocated independence in Xinjiang, for a series of terrorist attacks in the late 1990s and see similar groups as a separatist threat.
“I was held in a dark room for 20 days and physically tortured,” Nurmehmet reportedly said during the trial, adding that he had been made to give false confessions under duress while in detention.
Maya Wang, an associate director in Human Rights Watch’s Asia division, called the use of torture “routine” in cases where the accused is facing political charges, especially in Xinjiang.
In politically sensitive cases where the state would want to control the outcome, authorities will frequently deny families the right to appoint their own legal counsel, Nee added.
In the past year, the working group has issued opinions on three cases involving Uyghurs, all of whom were deemed to be victims of arbitrary detention and enforced disappearance under international law.
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Ikram Nurmehmet, 32, appeared on trial at Ürümqi people’s intermediary court on 27 October and is accused of organising “terrorist” activities and participating in an “East Turkestan separatist” group, sources close to him told the Guardian.
Chinese authorities blame the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, which once advocated independence in Xinjiang, for a series of terrorist attacks in the late 1990s and see similar groups as a separatist threat.
“I was held in a dark room for 20 days and physically tortured,” Nurmehmet reportedly said during the trial, adding that he had been made to give false confessions under duress while in detention.
Maya Wang, an associate director in Human Rights Watch’s Asia division, called the use of torture “routine” in cases where the accused is facing political charges, especially in Xinjiang.
In politically sensitive cases where the state would want to control the outcome, authorities will frequently deny families the right to appoint their own legal counsel, Nee added.
In the past year, the working group has issued opinions on three cases involving Uyghurs, all of whom were deemed to be victims of arbitrary detention and enforced disappearance under international law.
The original article contains 684 words, the summary contains 191 words. Saved 72%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!