Five Uyghurs detained in Thailand since 2014 are wanted under Chinese arrest warrants, with the country’s security chief saying on Wednesday that the courts will decide whether they should be returned to China.
Human rights groups have raised concerns over the fate of the five men, members of a Muslim minority group that activists say faces persecution in China. The concerns intensified after two of them were pardoned by Thailand last month.
The five are among more than 300 Uyghurs who fled China and were detained in Thailand in 2014. In 2015, a group of 170, mostly women and children, were sent to Turkey, while others, almost all men, were returned to China in 2015 and 2025 despite widespread international criticism.
The five men reportedly sought by China were jailed in 2020 for attempting to escape from immigration detention in Thailand.
The two who received pardons remain in custody awaiting deportation, according to a rights campaigner and an official.
Thai courts to decide on possible deportation
Government spokesperson Ekkapob Pianpises said the Thai government had given the two men the right to challenge their cases.
He added that they had been appointed a lawyer and that the courts would decide on their challenges.
The remaining three men have another year to serve in prison, National Security Council secretary-general Chaipruak Doungprapat told reporters on Wednesday.
Under Thai law, foreign nationals serving prison sentences can only be deported after completing their terms.
‘These five have arrest warrants in China and they have no refugee status,’ Chaipruak said.
He explained that if China submitted an extradition request, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would assess it before the matter was referred to the courts.
‘If the court rules that they are guilty, they will be handed over under the extradition treaty,’ he said.
‘If they win, it depends on whether any (other) country is willing to take them.’
Chaipruak said the five men’s situation differed from that of 40 Uyghurs deported to China last year, a move that triggered international condemnation.
‘This is a matter of justice, not related to policy, unlike the last 40 people,’ he said, without elaborating.
China’s public security ministry described the 40 men deported last year as ‘illegal migrants’.
Asked about the latest five cases on Wednesday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning did not provide specific details.
‘China and Thailand’s cooperation in combating cross-border criminal activities such as illegal immigration is in line with the two countries’ laws, international law and international practice,’ she said.
Rights groups warn of risks if returned to China
Thailand is not a signatory to the UN Refugee Convention but is bound by the international legal principle of non-refoulement, which prohibits countries from returning people to places where their lives or freedom could be in danger.
Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch (HRW) have called for the two pardoned men to be allowed to travel to a safe third country.
HRW warned on Wednesday that they would face ‘grave risks of torture and other serious abuses’ if returned to China.
Beijing has been accused of detaining more than one million Uyghurs and other Muslims since 2017 as part of a campaign that the United Nations previously said could constitute crimes against humanity.
China has strongly denied the allegations, maintaining that its policies have promoted economic development and tackled extremism in the Xinjiang region, where most Uyghurs originate.
