Ezimet is regarded as a kind, well-mannered and sociable young man. He has sole custody of his two young children from a previous marriage. His sons, Muhammat (7) and Mustafa (6), are inquisitive and delightful children. From the time they were toddlers, Ezimet played the role of both mother and father. The way he was with his children garnered my admiration and respect. From feeding and clothing his children, to changing their nappies, to dealing with any sickness, he was a very hands-on father. Despite the unfortunate circumstances he found himself in, he took it upon himself to raise happy and well-mannered children by instilling good values and morals. Despite the many trials in his life, he would always remain positive and hopeful.
What struck me was how much his sons adored him. His younger son Mustafa would cry at night when he realized his father wasn’t sleeping beside him and I can’t help but think of those tears knowing their father is now in a concentration camp. I still recall the children’s laughter as they played with their father. No matter what, even if there were dozens of chores and matters that needed attending to, Ezimet would always make sure to put aside time to just be present and focus all his attention on them, without distraction.
The rare times Muhammat and Mustafa were at their birth mother's residence, they would insist on going back home and beg for their father to return, which would result in their stay being cut short. After these visits, Ezimet would have to spend the whole night taking care of them, as their young bodies expelled all the artificial sugar they had consumed during their short stay. Sweets were often used to placate them when crying and because of the lack of proper supervision, there was no one to curb their consumption of these foods.
Ezimet felt strongly about the health of his children, and he would always make sure that his sons ate nutritiously and moderately. He would cook them wholesome Uyghur dishes. Treats were given sporadically and within reason. He was consistent and rational in his approach to parenting and firm in his ideas of how children ought to be raised.
To the Chinese authorities, he is just a name or a number to reach their quota of detainees. To his children, not only is he their father, but a friend, a protector, a way to a better future. These early years are crucial to children’s development and without a strong parental figure, this may prove detrimental to the children’s growth. This cruel government cares not for the psychological, mental or physical effects Muhammat and Mustafa are enduring in the absence of their father. Despite everything, I hope they will grow to become men he will be proud of and I hope they share his qualities, whether it is his kind heart, his strong faith or his humanity.
For years, Ezimet was also the primary carer to his ailing father, who had a heart condition. Abley was a gentle and soft-spoken man in his 70s. He relied heavily on his son and often sought his son’s advice on matters. It was obvious that the trust and love between them had passed on to Ezimet’s relationship with his own sons.
When Ezimet got word of his impending visit to the "school", his father was very ill. Ezimet feared that his father’s condition would further deteriorate after hearing the news, and so he informed his father that it would only be for a few weeks at most, in order to protect him from the brutal truth that he may never see his son again. Those weeks stretched to months until Abley’s death.
His father passed away in December 2017, whilst Ezimet was in the concentration camp. Ezimet was released for a period of 3 days to attend his father’s funeral. A few years earlier, his mother had passed away because of a brain tumour, and Ezimet was now left with only his older brother and younger sister.
In October 2017, the authorities detained Ezimet. At the time, he was just like any other young man, doing his best to raise his family. He had not broken any laws nor committed any crimes. Ezimet was a law-abiding citizen. A few days earlier, he had been made aware that he would inevitably be detained because of the quota that the authorities had set for that area. He happened to fit their bill of being Uyghur, male and within the target age range.
I recall when, months before he disappeared into the abyss, Ezimet and his friend would pick me up to attend a dinner and I noticed traditional Uyghur boots and costumes strewn across the back seat. I was told they had just come back from a performance, which I found perplexing. They were not the type to partake in the arts. Turned out the local authorities were forcing them to don these costumes to dance for the mainly Han tourists.
He had a small business selling herbal medicines. He was also a qualified chef and had previously owned a restaurant. Many also knew him from his side job as a driving instructor.Azmat Ablay (Aizimaiti Abulai), born 8th May 1986 (33 years old), Uyghur, lives in Ghulja.
Azmat is regarded as a kind, well-mannered and sociable young man. He has sole custody of his two young children from a previous marriage. His sons Muhammat, 7 and Mustafa, 6 are inquisitive and delightful children. From the time they were toddlers, Azmat played the role of both mother and father. The way he was with his children garnered my admiration and respect. From feeding and clothing his children, to changing their nappies, to dealing with any sickness, he was a very hands-on father. Despite the unfortunate circumstances he found himself in, he took it upon himself to raise happy and well-mannered children by instilling good values and morals. Despite the many trials in his life he always remained positive and hopeful.
What struck me was how much his sons adored him. His younger son Mustafa would cry during the night when he realized his father wasn’t sleeping beside him and I can’t help but think of those tears knowing their father is in a concentration camp. I still recall the children’s laughter as they played with their father. No matter what, even if there were dozens of chores and matters that needed attending to, Azmat would always make sure to put aside time to just be present and focus all his attention on them, without distraction.
The rare times Muhammat and Mustafa were at their birth mothers residence, they would insist on going back home and beg for their father to return, which would result in their stay being cut short. After these visits, Azmat would have to spend the whole night taking care of them, as their young bodies expelled all the artificial sugar they consumed during their short stay. Sweets were often used to placate them when crying and due to the lack of proper supervision, there was no one to curb their consumption of these foods.
Azmat felt strongly about the health of his children, he would always make sure that his sons ate nutritiously and moderately. He would cook them wholesome Uyghur dishes. Treats were given sporadically and within reason. He was consistent and rational in his approach to parenting and firm in his ideas of how children ought to be raised.
To the Chinese authorities, he is just a name or a number to reach their quota of detainees. To his children, not only is he their father, but a friend, a protector, a way to a better future. These early years are crucial to children’s development and without a strong parental figure, this may prove detrimental to the children’s growth. This cruel government cares not for the psychological, mental or physical effects Muhammat and Mustafa are enduring in the absence of their father. Despite everything, I hope they will grow to become men he will be proud of and I hope they share his qualities whether it is his kind heart, his strong faith or his humanity.
For years, Azmat was also the primary carer to his ailing father who had a heart condition. Ablay was a gentle and soft-spoken man in his 70s. He relied heavily on his son and often sought his son’s advice on matters. It was obvious the trust and love between them, had passed on to Azmat’s relationship with his own sons.
When Azmat got word of his impending visit to the ‘’school”, his father was very ill. Azmat feared that his father’s condition would further deteriorate after hearing the news, so he informed his father it would only be for a few weeks at most, in order to protect him from the brutal truth, that he may never see his son again. Those weeks stretched to months until Ablay’s death.
His father passed away in December 2017, whilst Azmat was in the concentration camp. Azmat was released for a period of 3 days to attend his father’s funeral. Few years prior, his mother had passed away due to a brain tumour, Azmat was now left with only his older brother and younger sister.
In October 2017, the authorities detained Azmat. At the time, he was just like any other young man, doing his best to raise his family. He had not broken any laws nor committed any crimes. Azmat was a law-abiding citizen. Few days prior, he was made aware that he would inevitably be detained due to the quota the authorities set for that area. He happened to fit their bill of being Uyghur, male and within the target age range.
Months before he disappeared into the abyss, I recall when Azmat and his friend picked me up to attend a dinner and I noticed traditional Uyghur boots and costumes strewn across the back seat. I was told they had just come back from a performance, which I found perplexing. They were not the type to partake in the arts. Turned out the local authorities were forcing them to don these costumes to dance for the mainly Han tourists. That’s what the Uyghur people had become to the Chinese, a cultural gimmick to indulge the clueless tourists.
Those that are in these concentration camps may have it the worst, but that’s not the say those outside, apparently moving about freely aren’t suffering either, especially having to pander to the communist government’s ridiculous demands.
Currently, Azmat’s exact whereabouts are unknown.
[additional from testifier: Azmat had a small business selling herbal medicines. He was also a qualified chef and had previously owned a restaurant. Many also knew him from his side job as a driving instructor.]
current location
Presumably in Ghulja.Presumably in Ghulja (Yining)
chronology of detention(s)
Detained in October 2017.Detained in October 2017.
suspected and/or official reason(s) for detention
---Unclear.
last reported status
There was no real news of Ezimet until he called me on June 26, 2019 via WeChat. The call lasted less than a minute and a half, and was our first conversation in ~20 months.
He called again on July 5, 2019 while visiting his children. This was a video call that lasted 30 minutes, and was very odd, confusing, and full of contradictions and code words. He looked very sleep-deprived. Towards the end of the call, he basically told me to do what it took to save him.
The last call we had was on July 20, 2019, when he called me from the streets of Ghulja while out getting a kawap-and-leghmen meal. It looked like he hadn't had a decent meal in a long while. I assume that this was just a day leave from the camp.
At one point, there was news that he was sentenced to another year of camp. However, he is now [as of February 2020] frequently posting on WeChat and seems to be "out", and is looking better than before.[from testifier on July 11, 2019, 1-2 weeks after the victim suddenly made contact with her, and 2-3 weeks after testimony was submitted:
"He contacted me again. I'm still getting my thoughts in order. The conversation was very odd/confusing ... full of contradictions, code words. I believe he is released for short amount of time every x days. Towards end of convo think he got to point where he was stuff this and so told me if i dont get him out of there he is as good as dead. Told me to do whatever it takes."]
[from video testimony: victim contacted the testifier on June 26, 2019 via WeChat, and they talked for less than 1.5 minutes; on July 5, 2019, he called again and the video call lasted 30 minutes - Ezimet was visiting his children and looked very sleep deprived - with Ezimet basically pleading with his fiancee to save him; testifier believes that he's only being released for short periods of time, since he doesn't reply to calls or messages except the ones he initiated]
[update from second video testimony: "On the 20th of July, he contacted me again via WeChat. This was the last time that I spoke to Ezimet. He was on the streets of Ghulja at the time of the call. He was in the middle of buying kawap - the traditional lamb skewers - along with leghmen. The way he spoke of the food, it was obvious that he hadn't had a decent meal in a long while, and was making the most of his day leave from the concentration camp. Since that day, he hasn't replied to any of my messages or my calls. I assume he's still being held in a concentration camp."]
[from testifier in February 2020: despite earlier rumors that Ezimet had been sentenced to another year of camp, he now seems to be out and is updating his WeChat regularly.]
how testifier(s) learned of victim's situation
I visited Xinjiang from July 2016 to October 2016 and again from August 2017 to October 2017. I was in Ghulja when Ezimet was detained.I visited East Turkistan (Xinjiang) from July 2016 to October 2016 and again from August 2017 to October 2017. I was in Ghulja (Yining) at the time that the victim Azmat was detained.
