In brief
The hunger strike, initiated by Uyghur men in a Thai detention center, aims to pressure the government against deportation, raising concerns about their safety if sent back to China.
In Bangkok, dozens of Uyghur men detained in Thailand, having fled persecution in China, have embarked on a hunger strike that has now entered its second week. Since January 10, they have been refusing food as a desperate measure to sway the Thai government from what they believe to be impending deportation back to China, where they could face torture and imprisonment. These detainees have spent over ten years in immigration detention, and their hunger strike began shortly after they were presented with "voluntary return" documents to sign—a move that triggered panic, reminiscent of a 2015 incident when Thailand deported 109 Uyghurs to China under similar circumstances. While Thai authorities claim no deportation plan exists and denied allegations of an ongoing hunger strike, the detainees are still expressing distress.One of the detainees managed to communicate secretly with reporters, providing insight into their grim situation, with four other sources corroborating their accounts. Most of the Uyghurs, who are primarily from the Xinjiang region of China, have limited communication with the outside world, only receiving doctor visits monthly.The Uyghurs are members of a Turkic-speaking Muslim minority group severely impacted by oppressive policies enacted by the Chinese government in an attempt to eliminate any perceived threats of separatism. Since 2014, China has implemented strict surveillance and mass detentions, with reports indicating that millions of Uyghurs have been placed in internment camps or prisons.
