Kazakhstan bans Uyghur rights researcher from entering its territory

Danish anthropologist and Uyghur scholar Dr. Ronya Stenberg was recently denied entry to Kazakhstan, primarily due to his years of advocacy for the Uyghurs.

Global Voices contacted Dr. Ronya Stenberg about this matter. He reported that despite having visited Kazakhstan several times before, he was stopped by Kazakh border guards on April 12 and told that he was not allowed to enter the country. Dr. Stenberg said the guards did not provide a clear reason, but he believes it was related to his research on East Turkistan and the Uyghurs.

Dr. Stenberg is not only a specialist in Uyghur studies for many years, but he also actively advocates against China's ethnic genocide in East Turkistan. Since Dr. Stenberg, who speaks fluent Uyghur, cannot travel to East Turkestan to conduct research, he has continued his research by visiting Uyghurs residing in the Turkistan republics, such as Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.

Global Voices contacted him via email and inquired about the reasons for his denial of entry to Kazakhstan. Dr. Stenberg said he planned to travel from Bishkek to Almaty on the evening of April 12 and cross the Kyrgyz border checkpoint as normal. However, upon entering the Kazakh border, border officials examined his passport in detail and photographed it. After a brief discussion, the officials informed him that he could not enter Kazakhstan, but without providing a reason. Dr. Stenberg was forced to return to Bishkek against his will.

Dr. Stenberg emphasised that he had never criticised the Kazakh government, that he had complied with the terms of his stay each time he had travelled to Kazakhstan, and that he had not violated any laws or regulations. He indicated that he was denied entry to Kazakhstan because of his research and activism on the Uyghur issue and East Turkistan, and that there could be no other reason.

In response to a question about his future research, Dr. Steinberg said that although he was barred from entering the two countries with the largest Uyghur populations, East Turkistan and Kazakhstan, he had extensive research material, and that Uyghurs lived in many other countries. His ban on entering Kazakhstan would not halt his research on the Uyghurs.

This is not the first time foreign researchers advocating for Uyghur rights have been barred from entering Kazakhstan. Researcher Yevgeny (Jin) Bunin, who created a massive database called Shahyet Biz and played a significant role in exposing China's ethnic genocide in East Turkistan, was previously blacklisted by Kazakhstan in 2021 and barred from entering the country.