Ilham Tohti
Tohti, an influential Uyghur writer and economist, co-founded the website Uyghurbiz. In September 2014, following repeated instances of harassment and detention, he was found guilty of separatism and sentenced… More
Ghoja’Abdulla Ablimit Sheyhim
In 2014, Ablimit, who writes using the pen name Sheyhim, was arrested after publishing his satirical stories on Uyghur community websites and meeting with a Uyghur language advocate. He… More
Abduqeyum Ablimit
Ablimit, one of Ilham Tohti’s students, was arrested from his home in 2014 for his involvement with the website Uyghurbiz, which promotes ethnic understanding between Uyghurs and Han Chinese.… More
Memetjan Abliz Boriyar
Boriyar was one of 14 staff members at the Uyghur-run Kashgar Publishing House to be arrested and detained in 2018 for his role in the publication of books deemed… More
Zhou Yuanzhi
Zhou has published political commentaries and short stories in Hong Kong and for overseas Chinese-language publications. Initially detained in 2017, he was sentenced in June 2019 to four and… More
Tashi Wangchuk
Tashi has publicly advocated for Tibetan language rights, drawing persecution from the state. In 2016, he was secretly detained and held incommunicado for two months. Sentenced to five years… More
Yang Shaozheng
In 2017, Guizhou University fired professor Yang over his “politically sensitive” academic writings. In June 2021, Yang was charged with “inciting subversion of state power” and detained after disappearing… More
Yao Wentian Yiu Mantin
In 2013, Yao was sentenced to ten years in prison for smuggling ordinary items, but his friends believe the publisher was set up. As of 2019, he is reported… More
Zhang Jialong
Zhang was detained in August 2019 in relation to his outspoken criticism of Chinese government censorship. The court accepted his tweets on digital freedom as evidence, and, on January… More