Turkey slams Thailand for deporting Uighurs

Turkey has condemned Thailand for forcibly returning to China nearly 100 Uighur migrants who were sheltering in Thailand after escaping alleged Chinese oppression in Xinjiang in the wake of a violent attack against Bangkok's consulate in Istanbul over the deportations.

"We are upset to hear of the return 115 of our consanguineous Uighur Turks in Thailand to a third country without their consent," the Turkish Foreign Ministry Information Department said July 9.

The Foreign Ministry accused the Thai government of acting against international regulations that regulate the status of refugees, saying, "Despite our numerous initiatives to related international organizations, we condemn Thailand's improper action, which is against international humanitarian law," Turkey's state-run Anadolu Agency reported on July 9.

The move came a day after Thailand sent back to China around 100 Uighurs who fled Chinese oppression against Uighurs living in the Xinjiang Autonomous Region, also known as East Turkestan.

Col. Weerachon Sukhondhapatipak, a Thai government deputy spokesperson, told Reuters on July 9 that Thailand sent around 100 Uighurs back to China on July 8. 

"Thailand has worked with China and Turkey to solve the Uighur Muslim problem. We have sent them back to China after verifying their nationality," he said.

Several rights groups and international organizations criticized the decision while China's treatment of Uighurs remains a sensitive topic for Turkey.

"It is very shocking and disturbing that Thailand caved in to pressure from Beijing," Sunai Phasuk, a Thailand researcher at Human Rights Watch, told Reuters. "In China they can face serious abuses including torture and disappearance." 

The U.N....