Rahile Dawut disappeared in 2017, and after years of no answers, it has now been confirmed that she is serving a life sentence in prison following a secret trial on charges of a crime of endangering state security. In September 2023, the charge was confirmed on appeal. The charge appears to be based on her teachings and research of Uyghur folklore and traditions.
March 2, 2024
President Xi Jinping
The State Council General Office
2 Fuyoujie
Xichengqu
Beijingshi 100017
People’s Republic of China
Dear President Xi,
The Committee of Concerned Scientists is an independent organization of scientists, physicians, engineers, and scholars devoted to the protection and advancement of human rights and scientific freedom for colleagues all over the world. For more than fifty years, CCS has been helping persecuted scholars overcome injustice and return to their academic work.
We are writing in regard to Professor of Anthropology Rahile Dawut. She is a renowned scholar of Uyghur studies who had created and directed the Xinjiang University’s Minorities Folklore Research Center. She has won awards and grant funding from China’s Ministry of Culture, and she is highly respected internationally. We have written to you previously on this case. She was one of the first prominent Uyghurs who disappeared on her way to a conference in Beijing in 2017.
Professor Dawut disappeared in 2017, where we understand she was arrested and sentenced to prison, apparently being taken by security officers from a train to Beijing. Later, in 2021, we learned that she had been sentenced to life in prison in a secret trial on charges of a crime of endangering state security. In September 2023, we had learned that charge was confirmed on appeal. We have not heard from her since 2017.
As her peers and colleagues, we ask that you, at the very least, provide basic information as to the whereabouts of Professor Dawut. We also urge that you release her immediately and unconditionally and allow her to return to her important scientific work.
Thank you for your attention to this very important matter and we look forward to a response from you shortly.
Sincerely,
CC:
Antony J. Blinken
Secretary of State
U.S. Department of State
2201 C Street, NW
Washington, DC 20520 USA
Phone: (202) 647-4000
Twitter: @ABlinken
Ambassador Nicholas Burns
U.S. Embassy & Consulates in China
U.S. Embassy
Beijing 55
Anjialou Road,
Beijing, China, 100600
Email:BeijingWebmaster@state.gov; BeijingACS@state.gov
Honorable Xie Feng
Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to the United States
Email:chinaembpress_us@mfa.gov.cn
Honorable António Guterres
Secretary-General of the United Nations
Email:sgcentral@un.org;antonio.guterres@un.org
Honorable Volker Türk
High Commissioner for Human Rights
Email:ohchr-InfoDesk@un.org; ohchr-civilsociety@un.org