Uighurs warn of PR stunt by China

China has called a mission by the UN rights chief a chance to “clarify misinformation” ahead of her visit to Xinjiang as Uighurs warned a public relations stunt may lie in wait.

The ruling Communist Party is accused of detaining more than a million Uighurs and other Muslim minorities in the far-western region as part of a years-long crackdown that the US and other Western countries have labelled a “genocide”. China vehemently denies the allegations, calling them the “lie of the century”.

Michelle Bachelet was expected to visit the Xinjiang cities of Urumqi and Kashgar on Tuesday and Wednesday as part of a six-day tour.

Ahead of her journey to Xinjiang, she met Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who also “expressed the hope that this trip would help enhance understanding and cooperation”, according to a readout of the meeting released late on Monday.

But Uighurs, the main victims of an alleged campaign of repression, raised doubts about her presence if her trip is as highly controlled as expected.

Nursimangul Abdureshid, a Uighur living in Turkey, said she was “not very hopeful that her trip can bring any change”.

“I request them to visit victims like my family members, not the pre-prepared scenes by the Chinese government,” she said.

“If the UN team cannot have unlimited access in Xinjiang, I will not accept their socalled reports.”

Another Uighur, Jevlan Shirememet, called on Ms Bachelet to help him contact his mother, whom he has not seen for four years.

The Turkey-based 31-yearold – from the province’s northern reaches near the border with Kazakhstan – also said he hoped Ms Bachelet would venture further than her itinerary.

Campaigners have voiced concern that Chinese authorities will prevent Ms Bachelet from conducting a thorough probe into alleged rights abuses and instead give her a stagemanaged tour with limited access. The US has said it is “deeply concerned” that she had not secured guarantees on what she will see.