URUMQI, China, Sept. 17 (UPI) -- The trial of Ilham Tohti, a professor and ethnic Uighur, on charges of separatism, began Wednesday in Urumqi, China.
The arrest in January and harsh treatment of Tohti, 44 -- regarded as a moderate in the rising tensions between native Uighurs and China's dominant ethnicity, the Han, in western China -- has been criticized by human rights advocates and scholars around the world. The charge of separatism, of attempting to form an independent state from Chinese territory in Xinjiang province, could result in a death sentence.
Xinjiang has been the site of several terrorist attacks. While some Uighurs seek a nation they call East Turkistan for the mostly Muslim minority, Tohti's case is seen as another crackdown of Chinese authority on the Uighurs.
"Mr. Tohti absolutely maintains his innocence," Li Fangping, his primary lawyer. "Mr. Tohti is an advocate for Uighur rights and religious freedom for the Uighur people, but he was never an advocate for Xinjiang independence or any kind of separatism."
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"Most of the students (supplying testimony) said Professor Tohti had separatist goals or intentions... We believe they weren't trustworthy statements, that they were made under pressure," he added. Tohti, an economics professor, was detained after he was critical of the Chinese government's response to a suicide bombing, for which ethnic Uighurs were convicted, in Beijing's Tiananmen Square.
The advocacy group Human Rights Watch said Tohti had "consistently, courageously and unambiguously advocated peacefully for greater understanding and dialogue between various communities, and with the state." Its China director, Sophie Richardson, added, "If this is Beijing's definition of 'separatist' activities, it's hard to see tensions in Xinjiang and between the communities decreasing."
Security in Urumqi was tight for the start of the trial. Some observers said Tohti's prosecution is an attempt to silence moderate voices and will exacerbate the situation in Xinjiang.
