My name is Rayhangul Abliz, and I am an Australian Uyghur he currently lives in Melbourne. I came to Australia in February 2010, and it has been 11 years since I have been living here. This testimony that I am giving regards my parents.
My father’s name is Abliz Tohti, he is 71 years old, and he is from Artush, Arghu. My dad was a long-term businessman however due to his old age and deteriorating health he decided to quit and instead rest at home. My mother’s name is Aygul Heyit, and she is a 68-year-old housewife.
In 2016 both my parents travelled to Egypt for a holiday. Whilst they were in Egypt, they went to the Saudi consulate to try and apply for a visa, but the visa was denied, and they went back home after their holiday.
After they came back from Egypt, the Chinese police did not give them any rest. Almost every day they would go to my parent’s home and interrogate them about their holiday in Egypt.
A couple of times a week my parents were required to go to the local council and were forced to write a sworn statement, as well as statements praising Xi Jinping.
They were also oppressed in other ways, including being forced to deny their religion. During this time, it was very difficult for me to communicate with my parents.
In April 2018 I heard that my parents were detained in concentration camps. I lost all contact with my parents, relatives and friends. Because I had no contact with them anymore, I believed my parents were still in concentration camps.
No matter what I did I was unable to contact them and get any sort of information about their whereabouts and their well-being.
At the beginning of 2021 I reached out to the Australian Department of foreign affairs and trade ‘China Policy’ office to ask them for help in getting information for me about my parents.
After their correspondence with the Chinese embassy, they contacted me in May and told me that since April 2018 both of my parents had been sentenced to 14 years in prison for supporting “terrorist activities”.
My father was a normal man, just trying to live his life in peace at home since he was unable to work as a businessman any more due to his worsening health conditions.
As for my mother, she was a simple lady who dedicated her whole life to looking after her kids and her home. To give out a prison sentence of 14 years to my father who is 71 years old and to my mother who is 68 years old is no different than sentencing them both to life in prison.
Putting the charge of “supporting terrorist activities” to the side, my parents don’t even know the meaning of the word terrorist.
The Chinese government is targeting innocent, simple and kind-hearted Uyghurs, and they are pressing them. The genocide against Uyghurs continues and is getting worse and worse every day.
It’s not just my parents who have been detained; it’s millions of Uyghurs who are suffering and have been tortured in these concentration camps and prisons that were solely made to destroy our people.
In 2017 when the crackdown on the week has had begun, both my parents were detained in concentration camps in May 2017. During their detainment they got really scared, and due to the serious health conditions, they suffered from hypertension and were then released on probation on house arrest.
During this time my parents were so scared that they cut off all their contact with me and refuse to pick up my phone calls when I called them. Due to this reason, it was extremely difficult for me to get any proper information regarding their well-being.
Until now the world has been silent on this issue. Even if they heard about it or saw the evidence, they are acting like they haven’t seen or heard anything.
It is the 21st century and genocide is happening right in front of everyone, yet the world is refusing to open its eyes.
What I am asking and hoping from the United Nations, the European Union and all the Democratic nations of the world, is to put an end to the Uyghur genocide, to help the Uyghurs, and to prevent China from spreading its poison to the rest of the world.
I also urge the people of the world to stand on the side of truth and justice.
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