China eases travel ban on Uighurs, keeps tight restrictions

Human Rights Watch said that the Chinese government has maintained "strict restrictions" and harsh conditions on Uyghur Muslims in East Turkistan (Xinjiang) who seek to travel abroad but has eased travel bans on those living in diaspora under specific restrictions.

The organization said in a report published yesterday that Chinese officials have now begun returning passports to some Uyghurs and allowing others to apply for travel, but they maintained "strict restrictions, conditions, and surveillance" on those who do so.

This easing has allowed some Uyghurs to briefly meet their relatives abroad after years of no news from them, "but restrictions remain in place," according to Yalkun Uluyol, a China researcher at Human Rights Watch.

According to the rights organization's report, Uyghurs must disclose their reason for travel and return by a specific date ranging from a few days to several months, not communicate with activists abroad, and pledge not to criticize the Chinese government while abroad. For business travel, Uyghurs are allowed to visit certain countries like Kazakhstan, while they are prohibited from visiting "sensitive countries" with large Muslim populations like Turkey.

The report added that they are rarely allowed to travel with family members and often face interrogation upon returning to China, noting that Uyghurs visiting China with foreign passports often face long waiting periods for visas, are interrogated by authorities, and are prohibited from staying overnight at relatives' homes.

The report was based on interviews with 23 Uyghurs outside China and Chinese government documents.

China is accused of detaining more than a million Uyghurs and other Muslims in East Turkistan (Xinjiang) in a campaign that the United Nations has said may constitute "crimes against humanity."

Beijing strongly denies these accusations, saying its policies have eradicated extremism from East Turkistan (Xinjiang) and brought economic development to the region.

Authorities have detained Uyghurs with connections to people abroad and confiscated their travel documents since the crackdown launched in mid-2010, according to researchers, activists, and members of the Uyghur diaspora.

The detention camps in East Turkistan (Xinjiang) are considered to be filled with violence, sexual assault, forced labor, and political indoctrination.

China denies these accusations and says the facilities were voluntary training centers that have been closed since the "graduation" of trainees.

Washington has classified Beijing's treatment of Uyghurs as "genocide," and in August, the UN Human Rights Commission considered what it calls "problematic" policies still exist in East Turkistan, two years after its shocking report that indicated the possibility of crimes against humanity there.