Criticism of show trials in China – United Nations must demand rule of law

The Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) criticizes the show trials against members of the Uyghur minority in north-western China to be "legally questionable" and "degrading". The
human rights organization urges the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, to demand fair and constitutional legal proceedings in the troubled region. "China is trying to use the show trials as a deterrent in order to prevent new violence. However, the degrading and discriminatory treatment of the Uyghur defendants will only cause more hatred and violence," warned Ulrich Delius, the STP's Asia-consultant, in Göttingen on Thursday. "The falling back on methods of Mao's repression system marks a serious setback concerning the efforts to improve the rule of law in the People's Republic. It is also a slap in the face for the German Federal government, which has been trying to work for a rule of law in China by means of the German-Chinese Rule of Law Dialogue since the year 2000."

Last Tuesday, 55 Uyghurs were convicted during a politically motivated show trial with 7,000 spectators in the stadium of Yining City. Before, the defendants, who are accused of "terrorism, separatism and murder", had been driven through the city in an open truck. According to official statements, at least three of them were sentenced to death. During Mao's dictatorship, show trials and public denigration or humiliation of defendants had been quite common in the People's Republic – but were hardly practiced at all during the last 15 years. Currently, the judicial authorities in the region Xinjiang (East Turkestan) are trying to silence critical Uyghurs and suspected perpetrators of violence by means of summary trials and public court proceedings. Before the show trial in Yining, 39 Uyghurs were sentenced to prison terms of up to 15 years for "terrorist activities" in the course of 16 concerted court proceedings in May 2014.

"Lawsuits that are a matter of life and death for the defendants are not to be mistaken for football games or any other kind of entertainment events. The requirements of the criminal trial laws must be met, giving the lawyers adequate opportunities to represent the interests of the defendants, even in China," said Delius. "Anyone who publicly humiliates and degrades the Uyghur people of Yining must know what he's doing – for the Uyghurs in the city are still traumatized by a massacre committed by Chinese riot police in February 1997, during which more than 100 people were killed. The victims had demonstrated for the release of a group of young protesters who had celebrated a religious feast day, despite an official ban. Several hundred Uyghurs were sentenced to death and subsequently executed for taking part in the protests in Yining – a Tiananmen-shock for all Uyghurs. It is absolutely irresponsible and dangerous to discriminate and humiliate people because of their ethnicity alone, especially in this city and in this conflict region."

Ulrich Delius, head of STP's Asia department, is available for further questions: +49 551 49906 27 or asien@gfbv.de.