The treaty, signed in 2017, was formalised at the weekend at the National People’s Congress, with state media saying it would be used for counter-terrorism purposes. Facing strong opposition within its parliament, Turkey’s government has not yet ratified the deal, and critics have urged the government to abandon it and prevent the treaty from “becoming an instrument of persecution”.
China’s persecution of the Uighur minority in Xinjiang has escalated in recent years, amounting to what experts have said is cultural genocide. More than 1 million people are thought to have been detained in internment camps, and there is growing evidence of re-education programmes, restrictions on religious and cultural beliefs, enforced labour schemes, mass surveillance and forced sterilisation of women.
Members of the Uyghur diaspora have given evidence of coordinated Chinese efforts to have people return to Xinjiang, or to use family in China to pressure individuals overseas against speaking out.
China strenuously denies the accusations and says the policies are to counter terrorism and alleviate poverty. Officials regularly dismiss all reports of abuses as fabrications.
In May, the human rights group Nordic Monitor expressed alarm at ambiguities in the text of the treaty, including a clause that said “it shall not matter whether the laws of both parties place the offense within the same category or describe the offense by the same terminology."
Other articles allow one party to refuse the request if they believe it is purely political or military, or if the subject has been granted asylum.
Leo Lan, a spokesman for China Human Rights Defenders, said the treaty would expose Uyghurs to a higher risk of being returned to China, where they could face detention and torture, and he warned Turkey of its international obligations of non-refoulement.
“China can use very ambiguous and broadly defined national security charges to request the extradition of certain people to China,” Lan told the Guardian.
Historically, Turkey has long welcomed Uyghurs and Turkic Muslims fleeing China and has spoken out against abuses. An estimated 50,000 Uyghurs are refugees in Turkey, making it the largest Uyghur diaspora hub in the world.
In May, Turkey’s ambassador to the U.S. reiterated the cultural and linguistic ties between the ethnic minority groups and Turkey, and told Axios “any issue pertaining to their wellbeing holds a special place on our agenda."
However, in recent years Ankara has grown closer to Beijing and increased its assistance in apprehending or interrogating Uyghurs who Chinese authorities have accused of terrorism. While it refuses to return Uyghurs to China directly, Turkey has been accused of sending them to a third country, like Tajikistan, where extradition to China is easier.
Residency paperwork has become harder to obtain, and many Uyghurs in Turkey report receiving phone calls from Chinese police threatening family members still in Xinjiang if they do not stop campaigning against the ruling Communist party’s policies.
Daily demonstrations by the Uyghur community are currently being held outside the Chinese consulate in Istanbul to protest against such treatment.