Uyghur leader’s brother jailed for 20 years in China
The brother of former World Uyghur Congress President Dolkun Isa is serving a 20-year sentence in the Chinese occupied East Turkestan region.
The Chinese government convicted 63-year-old math professor Yalkun Isa of “inciting terrorism.”
Yalkun taught at Aksu Education Institute, where more than two dozen Uyghur educators were arrested in 2017.
He was accused of contacting people abroad, downloading foreign content, and allegedly inciting others to form an organization.
Police reports suggest his ordinary discussions on international affairs were misrepresented as incitement.
Authorities interrogated Yalkun for a month, forcing him to confess that his brother had instructed him to establish an organization and carry out terrorism.
He was tried in a closed court and sent to Urumqi Prison No. 1.
Dolkun Isa, who led the Germany-based World Uyghur Congress from 2017 to 2024, condemned the sentence, saying his family is being punished for his activism.
His mother died in what the Chinese government calls re-education camps in 2018.
His other brother, Hushtar Isa, also was imprisoned.
Human Rights Watch says that these are internment camps used to indoctrinate Uyghurs and other Muslims since 2017 as part of the Chinese government’s war on terror.
China denies targeting Uyghurs unfairly, claiming security measures combat extremism.
However, activists say mass detentions aim to suppress Uyghur identity, with thousands of intellectuals imprisoned.
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