Uyghur Human Rights Project condemns lengthy prison sentences for 19 Ghulja men convicted of “endangering state security” in connection with July 5 unrest
The Uyghur American Association (UAA) condemns the convictions and prison sentences of 19 men in the city of Ghulja, in East Turkestan, on charges of “endangering state security”, in connection with the unrest that swept the regional capital of Urumchi on July 5, 2009.
According to an Yili (Ghulja) News Net report posted on October 23, 2009, the men were convicted and sentenced following an eight-hour trial on October 21 in the Yili (Ghulja) Kazakh Prefecture Branch of the XUAR Supreme Court. The eight names of the men convicted in the trial that were provided by state media indicated that the men were Uyghur, and UAA expects that, due to the nature of the charges, all 19 men convicted were Uyghur. The court heard that the men had planned to “protest illegally” in Ghulja after hearing about protests taking place in Urumchi. UAA urges extreme skepticism of the charges the men were found guilty of, in the absence of an open and fair trial, and in light of the documented persecution of Uyghurs who express peaceful dissent against state brutality.
As international human rights groups have noted, those subjected to trials in connection with the July 5 unrest in East Turkestan have been plagued by a lack of transparency and due process of law. As emphasized by the group Human Rights Watch in its recent report on post-July 5 detentions, there is no independent judiciary in China, and both prosecutors and judges in East Turkestan had received instructions from Party authorities regarding the handling of cases related to July 5. In addition, political criteria were used to select judicial personnel assigned to handle the trials.
