US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has implemented sanctions against unnamed Thai officials involved in deporting at least 40 Uighurs to China last month, despite concerns about potential persecution.
Rubio announced Friday that he was imposing immediate visa restrictions on current and former officials responsible for or complicit in the deportations, though no specific Thai officials were identified.
Rights groups have long accused China of widespread abuses against Uighurs, a predominantly Muslim ethnic minority of approximately 10 million people in Xinjiang. Beijing has consistently rejected these allegations.
“We are committed to combating China’s efforts to pressure governments to forcibly return Uyghurs and other groups to China, where they are subject to torture and enforced disappearances,” Rubio stated.
Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded Saturday, noting it had repeatedly clarified to concerned countries that China had provided assurances the men would not be harmed, and that Thailand would monitor their wellbeing.
“Thailand has always upheld a long tradition of humanitarianism, particularly in providing assistance to displaced persons from various countries for more than half a century and will continue to do so,” the ministry said in a statement.
Thai defense and justice ministers have scheduled a visit to see the men in China next week, with several Thai journalists invited to accompany them.
The issue dates back to 2014 when Thai authorities detained over 300 Uighurs fleeing China. By February this year, 48 Uighurs remained in Thai detention as authorities prepared for their return to China, despite appeals from Thai lawmakers and international officials against such action.
Rubio condemned the deportations “in the strongest possible terms,” stating that “Uyghurs have faced persecution, forced labor, and torture” in China.
The Chinese embassy in Bangkok posted on Facebook that 40 Chinese nationals who had been “smuggled” were repatriated to Xinjiang on a chartered flight, adding they had “all returned home and reunited with their families after more than 10 years.”
Rubio has been a persistent critic of Beijing and was sanctioned twice by the Chinese government in 2020 over his advocacy for Uighur rights and support for people in Hong Kong.
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