Abdulqadir Jalaleddin (Uyghur: ئابدۇقادىر جالالىدىن;[2] Chinese: 阿不都卡德尔·加拉里丁;[3] born 11 March 1964)[4] is a Chinese-Uyghur scholar and poet. He specializes in medieval Central Asian poetry and was working as a literature professor at Xinjiang Normal University until his disappearance in 2018. He is believed to be imprisoned in a re-education camp in Xinjiang, despite him previously expressing support for the Chinese government. By 2022, he was convicted of separatist activity and held at a regular prison.
Abdulqadir Jalaleddin | |
|---|---|
| Born | 11 March 1964 Shufu County, Xinjiang, China[1] |
| Occupations | Professor, poet |
| Academic work | |
| Discipline | Central Asian literature |
Sub-discipline | Medieval Central Asian poetry |
| Institutions | Xinjiang Normal University |
Disappearance
editRadio Free Asia's Uyghur-language service were informed of Abdulqadir's disappearance contacted police stations in Ürümqi, the city Abdulqadir worked in, but responding officials claimed they had no knowledge of his detainment. An anonymous respondent from Abdulqadir's department claimed that he had not been seen since late 2018, before that academic year's winter vacation, and that there were rumours among staff and students that he had been detained for "re-education".[5] Scholars at Risk and the World Uyghur Congress has expressed concern about his wellbeing and called for his release.[6][7] He was one of several Uyghur intellectuals who disappeared that year.[8][9][10][11]
An official of Xinjiang Normal University’s Security Administration later confirmed that Abdulqadir's residence in Ürümqi was raided by police on 28 January 2018, seizing writings and electronic devices. He was initially released, but rearrested the following day.[12] His son and daughter, who live in the United States and Japan respectively, told RFA an NHK that they demanded the release of their father.[13][14]
In the same year as his disappearance, Abdulqadir wrote an open letter in support of the Chinese government as part of a wider campaign by the latter to gather support from prominent Uyghurs. Rachel Harris of the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, a colleague of Abdulqadir who had known him for over a decade, said of him: "He was a very moderate man who always tried to give a balanced view, so much so that a lot of Uyghur nationalists accused him of selling out to the [Chinese] regime."[15] His wife, Jemile Saqi, an associate professor at Xinjiang Normal University, was reportedly also held at a re-education camp.[16]
Abdulqadir's exact location was unclear in 2021, though he still produced poetry from detention.[13] He contributed to the 2022 short story and poetry body Spring Will Come: Writings from East Turkistan, as part of the Asian American Writers' Workshop.[17] In September 2022, Chinese human rights groups reported that the Ürümqi Intermediate People's Court had sentenced Abdulqadir to 13 years imprisonment for inciting subversion of state power and ethnic separatism. He is serving his sentence at Ürümqi Prison due for release on 28 January 2031.[12]
See also
editReferences
edit- ↑ "242. ABDUQADIR JALALIDIN". Independent Chinese PEN Center (in Simplified Chinese). 9 January 2020.
- ↑ "ئابدۇقادىر جالالىدىن | ئۇيغۇر تورى". Uygur.
- ↑ "专访维吾尔青年巴布尔·加拉里丁：中共对维吾尔文化的清洗政策". Radio Free Asia (in Chinese). 26 November 2020.
- ↑ "Abduqadir Jalalidin". Asian American Writers' Workshop. 15 February 2023.
- ↑ "Prominent Uyghur Scholar Detained in Xinjiang Capital Urumqi: Official". Radio Free Asia. 25 April 2018. Retrieved 27 March 2025.
- ↑ Bell, Alex (29 January 2018). "2018-01-29 Xinjiang Pedagogical University". Scholars at Risk. Retrieved 27 March 2025.
- ↑ "China Studies between Censorship and Self-censorship". World Uyghur Congress - Uyghur Human Rights Advocacy Organization. 17 July 2018. Retrieved 27 March 2025.
- ↑ "The Persecution of the Intellectuals in the Uyghur Region: Disappeared Forever?". Uyghur Human Rights Project. 2 June 2023. Retrieved 27 March 2025.
- ↑ "Release Professor Abdulqadir Jalaleddin". Turkistantimes. 10 May 2018. Retrieved 27 March 2025.
- ↑ "UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON UYGHUR HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS IN NORTHWEST CHINA" (PDF). Retrieved 27 March 2025.
- ↑ "Detained and Disappeared: Intellectuals Under Assault in the Uyghur Home Land". Uyghur Human Rights Project. 2 June 2023. Retrieved 27 March 2025.
- 1 2 "获刑13年的疆师范大学文学系教授、维吾尔诗人、翻译家阿不都卡德尔·加拉里丁的案情及简历 – 权利运动". China Human Rights Campaign (in Simplified Chinese). 24 November 2025.
- 1 2 "Whereabouts, Well-Being of Renowned Uyghur Poet Unknown Three Years After Detention". Radio Free Asia. 28 April 2021.
- ↑ "专访维吾尔青年巴布尔·加拉里丁：中共对维吾尔文化的清洗政策". RFA (in Chinese (China)). 26 November 2020.
- ↑ Ramzy, Austin (5 January 2019). "China Targets Prominent Uighur Intellectuals to Erase an Ethnic Identity". The New York Times. Retrieved 27 March 2025.
- ↑ "242. ABDUQADIR JALALIDIN". Independent Chinese PEN Center (in Simplified Chinese). 9 January 2020.
- ↑ "Spring Will Come: Writings from East Turkistan | Көктем келеді: Шығыс Түркістаннан жеткен шығармалар | باھار كېلىدۇ: شەرقىي تۈركىستاندىن ئەسەرلەر". Asian American Writers' Workshop. 20 March 2023.