VOA Interview with Uighur Professor

VOA Interview with Uighur Professor Ilham Tohti in 2013
Translation published: January 15, 2016

Ilham Tohti was an economics professor at Minzu University in Beijing and the foremost Uighur public intellectual in the People’s Republic of China. He was sentenced to life in prison in September 2014 for criticizing the government’s policies in Xinjiang and advocating basic economic, cultural, religious and political rights for the Uighur people. The translation is based on the Chinese transcript of a VOA interview with Ilham Tohti in November 2013, shortly after the car crash of a Uighur family in Tiananmen Square on October 28, 2013, and less than three months before his detention on January 15, 2014. You may also want to watch our 32-minute documentary about Ilham Tohti. – The Editors

伊力哈木采访2 (2)
ILHAM TOHTI. PHOTO: VOA


BEIJING – The Chinese government has included Xinjiang and Tibet in its category of “core interests.” After the eruption of violent incidents in many places in Xinjiang, the Chinese government has enhanced its security presence there. In a recent interview with Voice of America, Ilham Tohti, a scholar of Xinjiang issues at Beijing’s Central Minzu University, spoke about what is really happening in Xinjiang and offered some recommendations to central authorities about how to resolve the Xinjiang issue.

Voice of America (hereafter, “VOA”): After the deadly car crash at Tiananmen on October 28, the only reports available to the Chinese public all have to follow the official reporting from Xinhua. But some overseas media have pointed out that since Tiananmen Square is so densely covered with surveillance cameras, there should be video of the incident from a variety of angles and locations. However, as of today the Chinese official media has not released any video at all. Prof. Ilham Tohti, have you been able to use your Uighur Online website to publish any independent opinions and report on what actually happened?

Ilham Tohti: On the day of the incident, we issued a statement saying that we shouldn’t be in such a hurry to come to a judgment about what happened until there was more evidence. Over the following several days, out of consideration for the safety of others associated with Uighur Online, I began publishing opinions under my name only. For several days, I was constantly giving media interviews. But there aren’t very many of us, and I have to consider other people’s safety.

I worry that, in the absence of any non-government media outlets, many people will only get their information from official sources. I fear that, just as in the past, this will lead to misunderstanding and hatred. I am hoping that, through VOA and other friends in the media, we will be able to make our own voices heard. We want to stop the ethnic hatred. Uighurs and Han are friends, not enemies. The primary responsibility for [this incident] rests with the government.

I daresay I can predict what the government’s next steps will be, as I’ve been right about this in the past. In a few days, the government will release video showing several Uighurs, their faces covered, tearfully apologizing and saying: “I committed wrongdoing!” However, it will be very difficult to confirm the identities of these people and determine whether or not they are actors. Based on the evidence currently being put forward by the government, it’s hard for us Uighurs to believe [that this is a terrorist attack]. If the government actually has evidence of this, it ought to make it public since this would help its case.

“Preferential” policies towards Uighurs

VOA: During this year’s annual meeting of the National People’s Congress, we interviewed some members of the Xinjiang delegation. At that time, the delegates made a point of mentioning all the various kinds of preferential treatment being offered to Uighurs, like extra points on the university entrance exams, no enforcement of the one-child policy, and bilingual education for ethnic children. What do you think of these preferential policies toward ethnic minorities?

pb_kash06#027
A MARKET IN KASHGAR. PHOTO: UHRP
Ilham Tohti: I have long expressed support for bilingual education, but I feel this policy has come too late. What we Uighurs oppose is being misled with false promises. The so-called bilingual education currently being carried out in Xinjiang is really an education aimed at assimilation into Han culture. The quality of education of Uighurs is on the decline, and bilingual education is in reality not what it sounds like. Many Uighur children can’t understand Uighur, and they can’t really understand Mandarin Chinese either.

As far as preferential birth-control policies are concerned, it’s true that Uighurs are allowed to have two or three children. But Han Chinese living in Xinjiang are also able to have more than one child. And this is not a policy aimed at Uighurs; it’s aimed at all ethnic minorities in China. On the other hand, I don’t really consider this to be a prefe

結果 (繁體中文) 1:

維吾爾族教授伊力 2013 年美國之音採訪翻譯出版: 2016 年 1 月 15 日伊力是北京中央民族大學和首要的維吾爾公共知識份子在中華人民共和國的中國經濟學教授。他被判處終身監禁在 2014 年 9 月為批評政府的政策在新疆和維吾爾人提倡基本的經濟、 文化、 宗教和政治的權利。翻譯基於中國 2013 年 11 月，在 2013 年 10 月 28 日，在天安門廣場的維吾爾族家庭車毀人亡後不久伊力和少於三個月前他被拘留在 2014 年 1 月 15 日美國之音採訪的全文。你也可能想要觀看關於伊力我們 32 分鐘紀錄片。— — 編輯伊力哈木採訪2 (2)伊力。照片: 美國之音 北京 — — 中國政府已列入新疆和西藏及其類別的"核心利益"。在很多地方在新疆的暴力事件爆發，中國政府已加強了其安全存在。在與美國的聲音，伊力，北京中央民族大學，新疆問題學者最近一次採訪中談到什麼真的發生在新疆和提供一些建議向中央有關如何解決新疆問題。美國 (以下簡稱"美國之音") 的聲音: 致命車禍後在天安門 10 月 28 日，向中國公眾所有可用的唯一報告必須遵循來自新華社的官方報告。但一些海外媒體指出，由於天安門廣場是濃密佈滿監控攝像機，應該有視頻的事件從不同的角度和位置。然而，到今天為止，中國的官方媒體尚未發佈任何視頻在所有。教授伊力哈你已經能夠使用您的維吾爾線上網站來發佈任何獨立的意見和報告實際上發生了什麼事?伊力: 事發當天，我們發表聲明說，我們不應該急於就有關作出判斷發生了什麼，直到沒有更多的證據。在接下來幾天，出於對安全考慮的其他關聯與維吾爾人線上，我開始發表意見下我的名字只。好幾天，我不斷在給媒體的採訪。但是沒有很多的我們，，要考慮其他人的安全。我擔心，在沒有任何非政府媒體的情況下，很多人只會他們的資訊從官方消息來源。我擔心，只是一如以往，這將導致誤解和仇恨。我希望，通過美國之音和其他媒體的朋友，我們將能夠讓我們自己聽到的聲音。我們想要阻止種族仇恨。維吾爾族和漢族都是朋友，不是敵人。[事件] 的主要責任與政府。I daresay I can predict what the government’s next steps will be, as I’ve been right about this in the past. In a few days, the government will release video showing several Uighurs, their faces covered, tearfully apologizing and saying: “I committed wrongdoing!” However, it will be very difficult to confirm the identities of these people and determine whether or not they are actors. Based on the evidence currently being put forward by the government, it’s hard for us Uighurs to believe [that this is a terrorist attack]. If the government actually has evidence of this, it ought to make it public since this would help its case.“Preferential” policies towards UighursVOA: During this year’s annual meeting of the National People’s Congress, we interviewed some members of the Xinjiang delegation. At that time, the delegates made a point of mentioning all the various kinds of preferential treatment being offered to Uighurs, like extra points on the university entrance exams, no enforcement of the one-child policy, and bilingual education for ethnic children. What do you think of these preferential policies toward ethnic minorities?pb_kash06#027A MARKET IN KASHGAR. PHOTO: UHRPIlham Tohti: I have long expressed support for bilingual education, but I feel this policy has come too late. What we Uighurs oppose is being misled with false promises. The so-called bilingual education currently being carried out in Xinjiang is really an education aimed at assimilation into Han culture. The quality of education of Uighurs is on the decline, and bilingual education is in reality not what it sounds like. Many Uighur children can’t understand Uighur, and they can’t really understand Mandarin Chinese either.As far as preferential birth-control policies are concerned, it’s true that Uighurs are allowed to have two or three children. But Han Chinese living in Xinjiang are also able to have more than one child. And this is not a policy aimed at Uighurs; it’s aimed at all ethnic minorities in China. On the other hand, I don’t really consider this to be a prefe