Policemen in riot gear guard a checkpoint on a road near a courthouse where ethnic Uighur academic Ilham Tohti’s trial is taking place in Urumqi, Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region, Sept. 17, 2014.
September 18, 2014 2:38 AM
Chinese scholar Ilham Tohti is expected to defend himself Thursday against separatism charges at the second day of his trial in the restive region of Xinjiang.
Tohti, an economics professor, is a member of the mainly Muslim Uighur ethnic minority group, which he says is suffering persecution at the hands of China.
One of Tohti’s lawyers, Li Fangping, told VOA on Wednesday his client rejected the separatism charges, saying the testimony against him was not trustworthy.
“Many of the testimonies were illogical, and that was why we raised doubts. Why were the organizers and members of the secessionist forces brought separately to trial? The security forces have investigated the case as a group of eight secessionists, but [split their trials]. Ilham was also very annoyed about it. And in this respect, there was no justice in the trial,” said Li.
Prosecutors have pointed to lectures and writings from Tohti’s “Uyghur Online” website that, they say, proves he is leading a group trying to overthrow China’s rule of Xinjiang.
Seven of his students are believed to have been arrested shortly after Tohti was taken into custody in January. At least some of them are thought to be testifying against him this week.
Tohti faces a possible sentence of life in prison if, as expected, he is convicted. His lawyers expect the trial to conclude Thursday, but say a verdict will not likely come until later.
Police have set up a multi-block perimeter around the courthouse, blocking access for journalists and Western diplomats who tried to attend the hearing.
Tohti was arrested in January and later accused of encouraging terrorism and advocating separatism in his lectures, articles, and comments to foreign media.
The charges against Tohti come amid China’s crackdown on violent extremism in Xinjiang, where hundreds have died in about the past year.
