'I begged them to kill me', Uighur woman describes torture to US politicians

Beijing has come under fire from activists, academics and foreign governments for its mass detention and surveillance of Uighurs.

The US has been the most vocal critic, and there is no sign that Washington will back down even with significant trade tensions ahead of a major meeting between Donald Trump, US president, and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping at the G20 in Argentina later this week.

Chinese authorities aren’t letting up their defence of these centres, which they call “re-education” or “vocational training” schools. Beijing has said they’re necessary to combat terrorism, and has decried global criticism as undue meddling by foreign governments.

Cui Tiankai, China’s ambassador to the US, warned Wednesday of retaliation “in proportion” if Washington were to install sanctions over these alleged human rights abuses.

Two weeks ago, US politicians introduced legislation urging the White House to consider sanctions against Chinese officials responsible for the ongoing crackdown and to halt the sale of US technology to China that could potentially be used for surveillance.

Former detainee accounts, such as Ms Tursun’s, can’t be independently verified, as China has not allowed foreign journalists or officials into the camps. Chinese state media reports have instead shown and described comfortable accommodation and fun activities.

Still, a growing body of evidence from satellite imagery of camp expansions to chilling accounts from former detainees paint a different picture. 

On Wednesday, American lawmakers will learn further details from Ms Tursun regarding alleged abuses at a hearing held by the US Congressional-Executive Commission on China.

Since 2015, Ms Tursun, who was born in Xinjiang, has been detained three times by Chinese authorities. The first time, she was dragged straight to a detention centre from the airport upon returning to China from Egypt, where she was studying English and lived with her Chinese husband. Her three infant children were separated from her, and one later died.

Although Ms Tursun was released months later, “all of my documents were confiscated by the authorities and I had been blacklisted,” according to her testimony. “There was a black dot in my identity card, which beeped wherever I went: a hospital, pharmacy, and even a bus, so police would check my card and had to approve every step I took.”

She would again be detained two more times, recalling interrogations that went on for days and sometimes involved an electric chair, being stripped naked and searched by male and female officials, forced to take unidentified drugs that caused her to blackout, made to sing songs that praise the Communist Party, and told often that being Uighur was a crime.

Ms Tursun’s prepared testimony also recalls crowded, unsanitary conditions and nine deaths of women in her cell alone.

Before her final release and eventual escape to the US, she was forced to read a statement on camera: “I am a citizen of China and I love China. I will never do anything to harm China. China has raised me. The police never interrogated me or tortured me, or even detained me.”

Although Ms Tursun is now living in the US, she remains worried Chinese authorities are monitoring her, as she has spotted before a group of Chinese men following her.

“I still have scars on my body from the constant beatings and pain in my wrists and ankles from the chains. I cannot hear on my right ear caused by heavy beatings,” according to her prepared remarks.

“I am still afraid at night that the Chinese police will knock on my door and take me away and kill me.”