This article was originally published by Radio Free Asia and is reprinted with permission.
A Uyghur man who attempted to flee from China in 2015 but was caught and forcibly returned has been sentenced to 19 years in prison, according to a person with knowledge of the situation and a police officer from the man’s hometown in Xinjiang.
Abduqadir Abdurrahman, who was 25 years old when he was sentenced, tried to leave the country via south China’s Yunnan province to go to South Asia when he was arrested by police in 2015, said a friend of his who now lives in exile in Turkey.
A policeman from Piyalma township in Guma county, where Abdurrahman was born, said he was arrested and sentenced after he was sent back to Hotan prefecture in Xinjiang.
Abdurrahman was sentenced to five years for “illegal marriage” in addition to the 14 years for the trip, he said, adding that Abdurrahman met and married his wife in a traditional Islamic wedding ceremony conducted by an imam during their sojourn.
Some Uyghurs who have tried to escape the repressive measures of the Chinese government in Xinjiang in hopes of a better life elsewhere, or who have gone on religious pilgrimages to Mecca in Saudi Arabia, have been caught by authorities along the way and sent home, according to previous Radio Free Asia reports.
Some were returned to China by the countries they first set foot in, while others were killed in clashes with police.
Abdurrahman, now 34, is serving his sentence in Xinjiang’s capital Urumqi, he said. His wife is also in jail, though the policeman didn’t have details about her sentence.
Abdurrahman’s friend, who declined to be identified for safety reasons, said he and Abdurrahman were traveling from their hometown in Hotan prefecture to the Chinese border when the number of travelers grew to more than 30. A day before they crossed the border, police invaded the house where they were hiding.
More than 20 fellow travelers were arrested, including Abdurrahman and his new wife, while five others escaped, his friend said.
Abdurrahman was born into a religious family, he said.
After graduating from middle school, Abdurrahman studied baking and later opened a bakery in Piyalma township, he said. During that time, he sometimes taught the Quran to children in the community based on what he had learned from his father.
As a result, Abdurrahman was detained on more than one occasion, and his bakery was closed several times in the following years.
Another policeman from Piyalma township township said four other Uyghurs from there had been caught and sentenced for the same reason as had Abdurrahman.
