UHRP Marks 10 Years Since Ilham Tohti’s Life Sentence, Calls for Immediate Release

September 23, 2024 | 9:00 a.m. EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact: Omer Kanat +1 (202) 819-0598, Peter Irwin +1 (646) 906-7722

Today marks the somber 10th anniversary of the life sentence given to Uyghur scholar and human rights advocate Ilham Tohti, a decade spent unjustly detained for championing peaceful dialogue and the rights of his people.

“Ilham Tohti’s case remains emblematic of China’s efforts to suppress Uyghur voices,” said UHRP Executive Director, Omer Kanat. “It is critical for the international community to continue pressing for the release of Professor Ilham and other Uyghur professors, as well as Uyghur doctors, writers, artists, and people from all walks of life suffering unjust imprisonment.” 

Ilham was taken from his home in Beijing on January 15, 2014, and subsequently charged with separatism. He was held incommunicado for months before he could meet his lawyers. On September 23, 2014, he was found guilty of “separatism” after a two day trial, which Human Rights Watch called “a travesty of justice.” Ilham is currently serving a life sentence in an Ürümchi prison, where authorities have barred access to family since 2017.

In the years since his arrest, Ilham has garnered significant recognition from the international community. On January 31, 2024, Ilham was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by the Congressional Executive Commission on China.

He was awarded the PEN/Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award in 2014, the Martin Ennals Award in 2016, the Weimar Prize in 2017, the Václav Havel Human Rights Prize in 2019, and the European Parliament’s Sakharov Prize in 2019.

On February 6, 2014, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found Ilham Tohti’s detention was arbitrary, called for his release, and for compensation. On April 18, 2021, UN experts published a letter to the Chinese government expressing serious concerns about the continued arbitrary detention of Ilham Tohti and other human rights defenders.

On June 28, 2021, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders called on China to release Ilham Tohti and ensure that he and other human rights defenders “can continue their meaningful and necessary human rights work without fear of retribution of any kind.”

Radio Free Asia recently reported that a Uyghur prison guard, Gopur Abdurreshit, was sentenced to seven years in jail for revealing information about Ilham after allegedly sharing details of Ilham’s solitary confinement, deteriorating health, and limited sunlight exposure.

Uyghur intellectuals, including scholars, writers, and artists, have faced relentless persecution. UHRP’s own research highlights the systematic targeting of Uyghur intellectuals—more than 300 have been detained, disappeared, or imprisoned—aimed at erasing Uyghur cultural and intellectual life. These actions align with findings from the UN and other international bodies documenting crimes against humanity and genocide.

UHRP renews its call for the immediate and unconditional release of Ilham Tohti and all Uyghur prisoners of conscience. We urge the international community to hold the Chinese government accountable for these violations and to amplify calls for justice.

Read more:

Amnesty International, World leaders must act to end decade of injustice for jailed Uyghur academic, September 18, 2024