Help bring Ekpar home – A decade of detention and health concerns

For ten years, entrepreneur and philanthropist Ekpar Asat has been unjustly imprisoned in China because he is a Uyghur. No one should suffer like this. On the 10th anniversary of his detention, send a message urging the director for prisons in Xinjiang – Party Secretary Qiao Xianghua – to release Ekpar immediately. Every message you send strengthens the global call for justice and keeps hope alive for Ekpar and his family.

What’s the problem?

“Ten years have been stolen. He should not lose another day,” – Rayhan, Ekpar’s sister

Ekpar was once a tech founder who built a popular online platform and dedicated his work to supporting older people and children with disabilities. The platform he created — which shared current affairs and cultural topics — drew scrutiny in an environment where freedom of expression is tightly restricted, especially for Uyghurs.

In April 2016, Ekpar went missing shortly after returning from a U.S. exchange program, and was convicted in a secret trial on charges of “inciting ethnic hatred and ethnic discrimination”. He is reportedly serving a 15-year sentence, but his family has never received court documents, never confirmed he had a lawyer, and for years had no meaningful contact with him.

During the first video call his family had with him in 2021, he showed signs of malnutrition, lack of sunlight, and inadequate healthcare, suggesting treatment and conditions that fall far below international human rights standards. When the family were finally allowed an in-person visit in mid‑2025, what they saw has made them, and especially his sister Rayhan, more concerned than ever that the prolonged imprisonment is causing serious harm to his physical and mental health.

What can you do to help?

People around the world are writing to provincial leadership in Xinjiang. You can join them and send an email directly to Xinjiang Prison Bureau Director and Party Secretary Qiao Xianghua urging him to release Ekpar Asat immediately.