Document - China: Further information: Nine executed in China
Further information on UA: 294/09 Index: ASA 17/063/2009 China Date: 11 November 2009
URGENT ACTION
NINE EXECUTED IN CHINA
Nine people - eight from the Uighur ethnic group and one of Han Chinese ethnicity - were executed in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (XUAR) in western China in early November. They were among 21 individuals sentenced in October in relation to unrest which broke out in the region in July.
The nine had been convicted of offences ranging from robbery and arson to murder. On 9 November the authorities announced that all nine had been executed. Although the announcement did not indicate when the executions were carried out, it was reported that the nine were executed after the Supreme People’s Court had reviewed and approved the sentences.
Violence and widespread unrest broke out in Urumqi, capital of the XUAR, and other parts of the region on 5 July after a police crackdown on what were initially peaceful Uighur demonstrations. The demonstrators were protesting the authorities' failure to take action following the deaths of at least two, but possibly several dozen, Uighur migrant workers during a riot at a toy factory in the city of Shaoguan, in the southern province of Guangdong. The authorities have accused overseas Uighur organizations, in particular the World Uyghur Congress and its president, Rebiya Kadeer, of having masterminded the unrest.
Since the July unrest in the XUAR the authorities have detained thousands of people, brought dozens to trial, and threatened those involved in the unrest with harsh sentences.
No further action is requested from the UA network. Many thanks to all who sent appeals.
This is the first update of UA 294/09 (ASA 17/061/2009). Further information: www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/ASA17/061/2009/en
Further information on UA: 294/09. Index: ASA 17/063/2009 Issue Date: 11 November 2009
