Ilham Tohti wins EU's Sakharov Prize

From the viewpoint of the Society for Threatened Peoples (STP), the fact that Ilham Tohti – a professor of economics who is currently imprisoned in China – was awarded the Sakharov Prize of the European Parliament is "a great sign of European solidarity with the persecuted Uyghurs". On Thursday, STP Director Ulrich Delius stated in Göttingen: "Tohti was sentenced to life imprisonment in China for defending the Uyghurs' human rights. He is to be seen as a tireless mediator between the Uyghur people and the majority population of the Han Chinese. The award is a great gesture, showing that Europe will not ignore the human rights violations against the Uyghurs." Tohti risked his own life and that of his family by demanding respect for the human rights of the Muslim minority. The award recognizes the peaceful engagement of a person who, despite all intimidation and threats from the Chinese state security authorities, kept up his life's work to promote understanding between the Uyghurs and the Han Chinese.

For the past two years, the STP had tried to convince the European Parliament that Tohti would be a worthy candidate for the Sakharov Prize. In 2017, the human rights organization had successfully nominated him for the Weimar Human Rights Award – and China's government had responded to the award ceremony with protests and sanctions against science facilities in Weimar. Further, there was a cyber-attack on the website of the Weimar Human Rights Award, most probably carried out by Chinese hackers. "Following the courageous decision of the European Parliament, we are expecting angry protests from China. The serious human rights crimes against the Uyghurs are a tabooed in China – and not only there: the People's Republic is trying to sweep the topic under the rug," Delius criticized.

The award was the best possible birthday present for Tohti, who will turn 50 tomorrow, on October 25. The STP has been campaigning for the imprisoned Uyghur human rights activist for years – trying to ensure that he will not be forgotten, as he is an important advocate for peace and understanding in Xinjiang / East Turkestan.

On September 23, 2014, Tohti had been sentenced to life imprisonment in an unfair two-day trial, based on charges of separatism. He had been arrested in January 2014, following months of intimidations and threats by the Chinese National Security. The security authorities had also put pressure in his students to testify against him in court. "The accusation of separatism is absurd because Tohti never advocated for an independent East Turkestan," Delius emphasized. On his websites, he tried to explain to Chinese and foreign diplomats – in Chinese – why there is unrest among the Uyghurs and it could be possible to solve the crisis. However, China's leaders did not want to hear his advice. Instead, he was silenced.