World Uyghur Congress calls for action after ex-police testimony on Xinjiang repression

World Uyghur Congress calls for action after ex-police testimony on Xinjiang repression
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The World Uyghur Congress has urged international action following new testimony from a former Chinese police officer that alleges continued repression and forced labour practices in China’s Xinjiang region.

The group cited reporting by Der Spiegel on former officer Zhang Yabo, who reportedly served in security and detention roles in Hotan between 2014 and 2023. According to the testimony, Zhang described involvement in the transfer of Uyghur detainees to state-assigned labour programs, including cotton harvesting under police supervision.

Zhang, who is said to have left China for Europe in 2025, allegedly contacted the World Uyghur Congress and provided detailed accounts of conditions in detention facilities and labour systems.

The organisation said the testimony supports its claim that repression in Xinjiang has continued in altered form since earlier mass detention campaigns, shifting from large-scale internment camps toward what it described as a more formalised prison system.

The group also referenced policy changes following the appointment of Ma Xingrui as Communist Party Secretary of Xinjiang in 2021, saying detention systems were restructured rather than dismantled.

Citing Zhang’s account, the organisation alleged that detainees released from so-called re-education centres were often transferred into prisons, forming what it described as a “carceral pipeline.” It also pointed to official figures from previous years estimating large-scale imprisonment in the region between 2017 and 2021.

The World Uyghur Congress said the testimony adds to existing allegations of human rights abuses and called on governments and international bodies to respond. It also highlighted risks faced by whistleblowers and their families in China, urging further protection for individuals providing information on the region.