testifying party

Testimony 1|2: Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the highest internal control institution of the Chinese Communist Party.

Testimony 3: Yasin Sidiq, the mayor of Urumqi.

Testimony 4: Memet'imin Bekri, the deputy commissioner of the Kashgar regional administration office.

Testimony 5: CGTN, an international English-language news channel based in Beijing and owned by China Central Television. Testimony 1: father daughter brother sister son mother grandfather grandmother grandson granddaughter uncle aunt nephew niece brother-in-law sister-in-law father-in-law mother-in-law son-in-law daughter-in-law cousin friend colleague former student relative relation unclear from same town/region n/a husband wife the victim lawyer child friends, family, and students great-nephew great-niece former schoolmate cousin once removed friend of relative boyfriend girlfriend friend of friend aunt-in-law acquaintance judge cousin-in-law nephew-in-law niece-in-law uncle-in-law former neighbor stepbrother stepsister stepfather stepmother stepdaughter stepson neighbor of relative detained together former teacher relative of friend relative of teacher sibling grandchild cousin twice removed trial attendee ex-wife great-uncle great-aunt in-law grandmother-in-law grandfather-in-law great-grandmother great-grandfather half-brother half-sister ex-husband direct third-party
Testimony 2: father daughter brother sister son mother grandfather grandmother grandson granddaughter uncle aunt nephew niece brother-in-law sister-in-law father-in-law mother-in-law son-in-law daughter-in-law cousin friend colleague former student relative relation unclear from same town/region n/a husband wife the victim lawyer child friends, family, and students great-nephew great-niece former schoolmate cousin once removed friend of relative boyfriend girlfriend friend of friend aunt-in-law acquaintance judge cousin-in-law nephew-in-law niece-in-law uncle-in-law former neighbor stepbrother stepsister stepfather stepmother stepdaughter stepson neighbor of relative detained together former teacher relative of friend relative of teacher sibling grandchild cousin twice removed trial attendee ex-wife great-uncle great-aunt in-law grandmother-in-law grandfather-in-law great-grandmother great-grandfather half-brother half-sister ex-husband direct third-party
Testimony 3: father daughter brother sister son mother grandfather grandmother grandson granddaughter uncle aunt nephew niece brother-in-law sister-in-law father-in-law mother-in-law son-in-law daughter-in-law cousin friend colleague former student relative relation unclear from same town/region n/a husband wife the victim lawyer child friends, family, and students great-nephew great-niece former schoolmate cousin once removed friend of relative boyfriend girlfriend friend of friend aunt-in-law acquaintance judge cousin-in-law nephew-in-law niece-in-law uncle-in-law former neighbor stepbrother stepsister stepfather stepmother stepdaughter stepson neighbor of relative detained together former teacher relative of friend relative of teacher sibling grandchild cousin twice removed trial attendee ex-wife great-uncle great-aunt in-law grandmother-in-law grandfather-in-law great-grandmother great-grandfather half-brother half-sister ex-husband direct third-party
Testimony 4: father daughter brother sister son mother grandfather grandmother grandson granddaughter uncle aunt nephew niece brother-in-law sister-in-law father-in-law mother-in-law son-in-law daughter-in-law cousin friend colleague former student relative relation unclear from same town/region n/a husband wife the victim lawyer child friends, family, and students great-nephew great-niece former schoolmate cousin once removed friend of relative boyfriend girlfriend friend of friend aunt-in-law acquaintance judge cousin-in-law nephew-in-law niece-in-law uncle-in-law former neighbor stepbrother stepsister stepfather stepmother stepdaughter stepson neighbor of relative detained together former teacher relative of friend relative of teacher sibling grandchild cousin twice removed trial attendee ex-wife great-uncle great-aunt in-law grandmother-in-law grandfather-in-law great-grandmother great-grandfather half-brother half-sister ex-husband direct third-party
Testimony 5: father daughter brother sister son mother grandfather grandmother grandson granddaughter uncle aunt nephew niece brother-in-law sister-in-law father-in-law mother-in-law son-in-law daughter-in-law cousin friend colleague former student relative relation unclear from same town/region n/a husband wife the victim lawyer child friends, family, and students great-nephew great-niece former schoolmate cousin once removed friend of relative boyfriend girlfriend friend of friend aunt-in-law acquaintance judge cousin-in-law nephew-in-law niece-in-law uncle-in-law former neighbor stepbrother stepsister stepfather stepmother stepdaughter stepson neighbor of relative detained together former teacher relative of friend relative of teacher sibling grandchild cousin twice removed trial attendee ex-wife great-uncle great-aunt in-law grandmother-in-law grandfather-in-law great-grandmother great-grandfather half-brother half-sister ex-husband direct third-party
Testimony 6: add father daughter brother sister son mother grandfather grandmother grandson granddaughter uncle aunt nephew niece brother-in-law sister-in-law father-in-law mother-in-law son-in-law daughter-in-law cousin friend colleague former student relative relation unclear from same town/region n/a husband wife the victim lawyer child friends, family, and students great-nephew great-niece former schoolmate cousin once removed friend of relative boyfriend girlfriend friend of friend aunt-in-law acquaintance judge cousin-in-law nephew-in-law niece-in-law uncle-in-law former neighbor stepbrother stepsister stepfather stepmother stepdaughter stepson neighbor of relative detained together former teacher relative of friend relative of teacher sibling grandchild cousin twice removed trial attendee ex-wife great-uncle great-aunt in-law grandmother-in-law grandfather-in-law great-grandmother great-grandfather half-brother half-sister ex-husband add add direct third-party

Update 

Name:    Description:    unverified verified    1 2 3 4 5    Add

about the victim

Alimjan Memetimin (阿力木江-买买提明), born October 1959. Former Secretary of Party Member's Group of the General Office of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region People's Government (自治区人民政府办公厅党组书记).

Testimony 5: he was at one point the Deputy Director General of the Xinjiang Education Department.

current location

[Unclear, as sentenced.]

chronology of detention(s)

Investigation officially started on June 28, 2015 (Testimony 1). Alimjan was stripped of his Party membership on February 28, 2016 (Testimony 2). There has been no news since.

suspected and/or official reason(s) for detention

Testimony 1: 'Serious disciplinary violations' - a euphemism for corruption.

Testimony 2: a number of accusations, generally related to corruption.

Testimony 3: However, Urumqi mayor's Yasin Sidiq's (牙生·司地克) article "Uyghurs are not the descendants of Turks" (维吾尔族不是突厥人后裔) make it clear that Alimjan Memetimin's case was widely known among the cadres as an example of a "two-faced" person who had been assisting "separatist forces" by "distorting historical facts".

Testimony 3-4: he is listed together with Sattar Sawut and Abdurazaq Sayim as a making up the "two-faced" officials who were plotting separatism.

Testimony 5: in the CGTN propaganda film, he calls himself a "double-dealing 'two-faced man'". It is also implied that his prison sentence is in connection with his role in producing "separatist" Uyghur textbooks, which he says in the film were "full of 'Pan-Islamism' and 'Pan-Turkism'" and contained historical figures that were "meant to encourage the kids to seek their cultural origins and roots from outside China".

last reported status

Detained

Testimony 5: sentenced to life.

how testifier(s) learned of victim's situation

Testimony 1-4: these are all Chinese government sources.

Testimony 5: CGTN put the victim on camera.

additional information

Original investigation announcement (Testimony 1): http://archive.is/ScqTl

Announcement of victim being stripped of Party membership (Testimony 2): http://archive.is/cEdIk

Yasin Sidiq's article (Testimony 3): https://www.guancha.cn/society/2018_08_25_469557.shtml (http://archive.ph/wip/Kj98W)

Memet'imin Bekri's article (Testimony 4): http://archive.is/vX27k

His Baidu Baike: https://archive.vn/36USX

South China Morning Post mention: https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3077987/former-head-xinjiangs-agriculture-department-arrested-taking

Announcement of his 2013 appointment: https://archive.is/ZHTDq

state-media report(s)

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqlzunwilGM

Almira Muhter: "It was terrifying."

Kadir Memet: "Not an isolated attack."

Reporter: "Not a lone-wolf?"

Kadir Memet: "No."

Adil (Police Officer): "They're in the shadows."

Reporter: "The recruits?"

Abduweli (Xinjiang Internet Information Office): "Young people."

Abdul Tursuntohti: "I'm proud of my deeds."

Kadir Memet: "If we didn't, Urumqi would be..."

Shirzat Bawudun: "I'm a 'two-faced' man."

Murat Sheripjan: "Get rid of the 'two-faced'."

Bai Fengjie (Prison Instructor): "Get them on the right track."

Dilnur Eziz: "I've grown up."

Kadir Memet: "The cost is high."

[Identity unclear]: "A battle without smoke."

===
The War in the Shadows.

A CGTN Production 2021.
===

===
WARNING

The following documentary contains scenes that some viewers may find disturbing. Some footage is released to the public for the first time. Viewer discretion is advised. The terrorist attacks in the documentary are only a small part of the archives.

All interviewees have given permission to use their images. At the request of certain counter-terrorism organizations, the identity of some interviewees has been obscured for security reasons.
===

===
Part One
The Networks
===

===
Urumqi
===

Yang Shaoheng (Victim's Family Member): "You see this little courtyard. My father-in-law was always working here... You can see all the tomatoes and peppers he planted."

Reporter: "He really loved life."

Yang Shaoheng: "Yes, he really loved life."

Reporter: "Did he spend a lot of time here every day?"

Yang Shaoheng: "Yes, every day, the whole morning, working in the garden."

Yang Shaoheng: "Whenever I enter the courtyard, I think of him. He left on the morning of May 22nd and never came back..."

[On-screen]: "May 22, 2014, Urumqi. 39 civilians killed, 94 injured."

Yang Shaoheng: "His face was unrecognizable."

Yang Shaoheng: "We'd been together for so long, but I couldn't recognize him."

Narrator: "Police officer 'Adil' says whenever he thinks of the victims, it's hard to take."

[On-screen]: "North Park Street, Urumqi"

Narrator: "This incident keeps torturing him."

Adil (Police Officer): "There were fire engines, ambulances and SWAT teams... Many people were lying on the ground. Smoke was rising from two SUVs."

Yang Shaoheng: "There was a morning market on the street, with fresh produce at reasonable prices."

Adil: "I questioned the main suspect. He said they had surveyed the area many times. They thought more deaths guaranteed entering Paradise."

Kadir Memet (Fmr. Deputy Chief, Urumqi Public Security Bureau): "Two off-road vehicles had exploded. Four of the bodies we confirmed to be the suspects."

Kadir Memet: "Look at the aftermath. 39 people died, and over 90 were wounded. It was still very dangerous. There might be a second explosion. Once I arrived, I sensed it must be a terrorist attack."

Reporter: "So it wasn't a lone wolf attack?"

Kadir Memet: "No. Because there were many explosives, one or two persons couldn't have built them. After the Urumqi attack, they had planned something similar in Hotan's Pishan county."

Reporter: "Where did they get the materials?"

Kadir Memet: "They bought potassium permanganate and other chemicals on the internet and produced them. They learned on the internet.”

Reporter: "Was there other evidence?"

Kadir Memet: "Yes, his cellphone. He used a chat app to contact terrorist groups outside China and to download videos. The flags were also taken from Hotan. They hung the flags on top of the vehicles beforehand."

Reporter: "What did this mean?"

Kadir Memet: "It's a statement of their 'jihad'. It was a suicide mission."

---

Reporter: "What stands out in your memory?"

Yang Shaoheng: "They are also human beings, those terrorists. Well... I don't know what they were thinking, either. Didn't they have parents and children at home? How could they be so brutal?"

---

Adil (Police Officer): "We soon caught the main suspect, about six or seven hours later."

Kadir Memet: "After the interrogation, we had a clear picture of the case. The terrorist group headed by Abliz orchestrated the incident."

Adil: "He was so resistant. We explained the state's policies and laws, he just wouldn't listen. I tried to explain it from a religious perspective. He just sat there and looked at me. 'If there had been someone who explained to me about Islam and the Quran like you, I wouldn't have taken part in the terrorist attack'."

Kadir Memet: "They are also victims. Why? Their minds were poisoned by the 'Three Evil Forces'. None of the masterminds committed suicide. They just took control of their minds and instructed them to (undertake suicide attacks) like a death squad. The significance was that it prevented similar incidents from happening."

Narrator: "Kadir Memet is a highly respected veteran of the Public Security Bureau of Urumqi. He has solved numerous cases. He figured out the attacks were part of a region-wide network."

Kadir Memet: "We've come to see the pattern that so many cases of violent terrorism were not isolated. They had unified command and planning. And they had very specific targets."

[On-screen]: "June 21, 2014, Yecheng County. 13 terrorists killed, 3 policemen injured."

Narrator: "Years of investigation have shown Kadir Memet the big picture."

[On-screen]: "February 25, 1997, Urumqi. 9 civilians killed, 68 injured."

Narrator: "He says the terrorists are working in the shadows, forming a vast network."

[On-screen]: "April 30, 2014. 3 killed, 79 injured."

Narrator: "His job is to bring them to light. Extremism ruins lives. Young people are radicalized in various ways."

Almira Muhter: "At first it didn't leave much of an impression on me. There're instructions like 'Only satisfying your mother's wishes ensures a place in Paradise'... Then it gradually moved to 'jihad', martyring oneself to enter Paradise. It was terrifying."

Muhter Kadir (Father of Almira): "She was a very hardworking student, first in her school."

Almira Muhter: "I came to believe the teachings, such as women should stay at home. Then I figured that continued education in college would be the wrong direction, and that I should give up. So I refused to go to college."

Muhter Kadir: "I was so angry. The extremist ideas ruined her."

Almira Muhter: "Back then I longed to live in another country and thought about moving there for the 'jihad'."

Narrator: "In 2012, Almira Muhter was convicted of inciting 'jihad' and extremism online, and other crimes. She was sentenced to 10 years."

Bai Fengjie (Prison Instructor): "She thought she was correct. She was eager to sacrifice her youth to the so-called 'jihad'."

Almira Muhter: "I thought I was doing the right thing and it didn't count as breaking the law. I'd considered the consequences, but I thought my goal was to wage 'jihad' and I must carry it to the very end. After I entered prison, I was still influenced by such ideas. So I committed more crimes."

Narrator: "In 2018, Almira was convicted of conspiracy to commit murder and arson in the prison. Her sentence was extended to 2035. Radicalized individuals can be a hard case. Abdul Tursuntohti is serving 9 years for inciting terrorism and other crimes."

Reporter: "Do you still believe you've done nothing wrong or illegal?"

Abdul Tursuntohti: "I committed no crime, I'm proud of what I did."

Reporter: "You're willing to kill for Allah?"

Abdul Tursuntohti: "If Allah orders, I will even kill my son, to say nothing of infidels."

Reporter: "What is your biggest wish?"

Abdul Tursuntohti: "To do Allah's bidding, of course, and enter Paradise to fulfill myself."

Reporter: "What's Paradise like?"

Abdul Tursuntohti: "Paradise is a beautiful garden, broader than Heaven and Earth. There are 72 houris for the faithful. There're divine delicacies mortals have never seen, never really appreciated and never heard of. There're double the amount of rewards ever imagined by humans. And it's eternal."

Reporter: "If Paradise is so great, why not go there now?"

Abdul Tursuntohti: "The days in prison are the highest test Allah has given me. And it's the best life Allah has given me."

Reporter: "You don't think you're being deceived?"

Abdul Tursuntohti: "Rather than regret, I'd leap into fire and burn to death."

Reporter: "Will you change your mind some day?"

Abdul Tursuntohti: "When I wake up each morning, I pray 100 times to Allah that I will never change."

===
Urumqi
===

Narrator: "Dilnur Guanfengbao is a police officer. She is also a prison psychological consultant. She says she studies why some young people become easy targets for extremists, and how to bring them back to normal."

Dilnur Guanfengbao (Psychologist): "We find some of the convicts are very obstinate. They fit the anti-social personality profile. It's hard for them to change... Their minds are like alkaline soil, hardened alkaline soil. You can't grow anything there. This group of people craves help but pushes you away at the same time. Their religious fervor pursuit is a psychological distortion. So during the counseling, we keep them company to find the reasons. I will keep bringing him back to reality. He might insist what he's been pursuing was what he needed. We aim to offer them a link. So the counselors offer warmth, which will be internalized. They would learn for the first time that 'I've actually never known myself'."

Reporter: "What are we doing to prevent recidivism?"

Dilnur Guanfengbao: "After he returns to society, his family has to re-understand him and accept him as someone new. Society might have to provide him all kinds of opportunities, in terms of employment, education, and skill training. Our efforts in prison are far from enough for them."

---

Almira Muhter: "Now I truly realize that I had really been an ignorant fool."

Bai Fengjie (Prison Instructor): "I keep having heart-to-heart talks with her. I try to approach it in terms of feelings and understanding of the law."

Almira Muhter: "I used to think that law was a word far removed from our life."

Bai Fengjie: "I hope even more they will truly transform on the inside."

Almira Muhter: "The Paradise I used to yearn for is a fiction. It's a cancer."

Bai Fengjie: "I think it's necessary to crack down on the dissemination of such misleading information."

Almira Muhter: "I think I failed my mother the most. She had such great expectations of me. I just want to be a good daughter."

Bai Fengjie: "I'm a police officer. But I'm more like a teacher. I want to help these straying children, these students, back on the right track. We shouldn't be afraid that one or two heart-to-heart talks have no effects. We mustn't give up on them. We have to believe they will eventually change."

---

Bai Fengjie: "How's your health recently?"

Almira Muhter: "Really good."

Bai Fengjie: "Did you make the video call?"

Almira Muhter: "Dad was busy. Mom and my brother came. They are both well.

Bai Fengjie: “Keep your confidence up."

Almira Muhter: "Thank you, instructor."

---

Kadir Memet: "Urumqi is the political, economic and cultural center of the autonomous region. The enemy aims their destruction at Urumqi."

Narrator: "Some of the cases have never been made public before."

Kadir Memet: "This is the foiled December 11 terror plot in 2014. They had planned explosions and knife attacks around Urumqi. If it hadn't been stopped, Urumqi could've been... This is a violent terrorist group. It was controlled by a family. Two daughters joined. The father was the leader. Both sons-in-law were part of it. They recruited a dozen more people. They were going to convert a gas cylinder into a bomb. They were going to drive the car into a shopping center."

Reporter: "What is the priority of the crackdown?"

Kadir Memet: "Foiling their plans would be..."

Adil (Police Officer): "This is the most difficult."

Reporter: "We've paid such a high price."

Adil: "The biggest challenge is that they're hidden in the dark. They can see our operations. But we can't see their plans. If we go soft, there might be more deaths and suffering."

[On-screen]: "April 23, 2013, Seriqbuya. 15 police officers & community staff killed."

Adil: "So this is a lesson learned from blood."

[On-screen]: "2020 Counter-terrorism Drills. Urumqi Public Security Bureau"

[Footage of counter-terrorism drills plays.]

Kadir Memet: "Urumqi is such a beautiful place. Solidarity and prosperity, that's an Urumqi I'd like to see."

===
Part Two
The Enemies Within
===

===
Hotan
===

Narrator: "Hotan was one of the hardest hit by terrorism in Xinjiang. Murat Sheripjan showed us the weaponry seized. He said many young people had been brainwashed. Insiders, dubbed the 'two-faced persons', were able to exploit the system."

Murat Sheripjan (Deputy Director, Hotan Public Security Department): "The infiltration of extremism had taken root. Also, some 'two-faced people' among us were secretly collaborating with them and facilitating their activities. This presentation lists a number of 'two-faced people' once occupying our key positions. A case in point is Shirzat Bawudun. He had been long hidden buried deep in our system as a 'two-faced person'. He created many obstacles in our work. He used to be one of us, and he protected many separatist forces. He finally became an agent for ethnic separatists and terrorists from outside China. He helped them expand their influence."

Shirzat Bawudun (Fmr. Deputy Secretary, Political & Legal Committee, Xinjiang): "All this now feels like a nightmare. It's like a bottomless pit, in which I kept sinking."

===
Shirzat Bawudun
Fmr. Director, Public Security Bureau, Moyu County
Fmr. Director, United Front Work Department, Urumqi
Fmr. Director General, Department of Justice, Xinjiang
Fmr. Deputy Secretary, Political & Legal Committee, Xinjiang
===

Narrator: "Shirzat Bawudun became a teacher at the Xinjiang Police College in Urumqi after graduating in 1988. But he applied to return to his hometown in Hotan. Even then he had certain ambitions."

Shirzat Bawudun: "Veteran separatists vigorously promoted their ethnic separatism and religious extremism, which began to spread and take hold. So I decided to go back and see what I could use to do something big."

Narrator: "During a crackdown on terrorists, Shirzat Bawudun was wounded and commended as a 'Counter-terrorism Hero'. For this, in 2001 he became the head of the Moyu County Public Security."

Shirzat Bawudun: "Then I got the position and the power. I had long considered the so-called dream of a country of our own. So I began to get in touch with prominent figures in religious extremism."

Narrator: "Shirzat Bawudun chose Ablajan Bakri."

[On-screen diagram: A photograph of Shirzat Bawudun is shown connected to a photograph of Ablajan Bakri. The word "Egypt" is displayed below the diagram.]

===
Ablajan Bakri
Fmr. Imam, Moyu Mosque
Fmr. President, Islamic Association, Moyu County
Fmr. CPPCC Member, Xinjiang
Fmr. Member, China Islamic Association
===

Shirzat Bawudun: "His words and theories all contained religious extremism. I knew many things about it."

Ablajan Bakri: [sic] "I was promoted to the Iman of the Grand Mosque in 2005. At the same time, people started to gossip behind my back. As the Moyu county chief, Shirzat Bawudun used all means to suppress those people to remove the negative comments about me."

Shirzat Bawudun: "I regarded him as an instrument to draw believers to our cause."

Memet Memetimin (Imam, Moyu Mosque): "Ablajan Bakri was the mosque's imam. He used the religious platform to promote extremism. To achieve his own ends, he was distorting the teachings of Islam. I remember when I was small, religious extremism in Moyu was very deep. They said dancing was not allowed; weeping was not allowed at funerals. They even forbade living in government-built housing and using IDs and RMB. Some of the preachers had their own motives. They had parents send their kids to underground madrasas to be indoctrinated. Many young people strayed and became criminals."

Murat Sheripjan: "That kind of fallacy confuses them and drives them to engage in terrorist activities."

Ablajan Bakri: "I believe Shirzat Bawudun had a role in this change."

[On-screen diagram: The photos of Shirzat Bawudun and Ablajan Bakri are connected to a silhouette representing Tayir Abbas. The word "Egypt" is displayed below the diagram.]

Narrator: "In 2003, Ablajan Bakri introduced Shirzat Bawudun to Tayir Abbas, a key member of the East Turkistan Islamic Movement, or ETIM."

===
Tayir Abbas
East Turkistan Islamic Movement
(Islamic Party of Turkistan)
===

Narrator: "It's been listed as a terrorist organization by the UN since 2002."

===
United Nations Security Council
Since 2002, the ETIM has been listed as a terrorist organization by the UN. In 2004, the ETIM changed its name to the Islamic Party of Turkistan, or TIP.
===

Narrator: "In 2004, the ETIM changed its name to the Islamic Party of Turkistan, or TIP."

Shirzat Bawudun: "He said he mainly worked in tourism over there. And he was in touch with an ETIM (TIP) Egypt branch. I was thinking of Uygurs having a country of our own. I was muddle-headed and stupid."

Narrator: "Connecting with the ETIM (TIP), Shirzat Bawudun took action."

Shirzat Bawudun: "To accomplish anything, you need an economic base."

[On-screen diagram: The photo of Shirzat Bawudun is connected to Ablimit Ababakri and Abduehet Ababakri.]

Shirzat Bawudun: "So I thought about the Ablimit family and recruited the two brothers."

===
Ablimit Ababakri
ETIM (TIP) Member
===

===
Abduehet Ababakri
ETIM (TIP) Member
===

Abduehet Ababakri: "Shirzat Bawudun told my elder brother he was born in Moyu county. He urged us to invest here. He asked us whether we had any projects needing his support and help."

Ablimit Ababakri: "Now I realized that while he seemed to push us to do business in Moyu, he actually had some other motive, which we weren't aware of."

Narrator: "With the help of Shirzat Bawudun, the two brothers soon made money and their business began to thrive."

Ablimit Ababakri: "Of the four companies with which he had financial connections, these three -- real estate, road transport and gas stations, in each firm, Shirzat had a half-million shares. All did good business and paid dividends every year. He could draw funds as needed. That's how it was for a long time."

Narrator: "In 2011, Shirzat Bawudun was appointed Director of the United Front Work Department of Urumqi. Police say he secretly supported the spread of extremism. The same year, he encouraged the brothers to go to Egypt and meet with Tayir Abbas."

[On-screen diagram: A photo of Shirzat Bawudun is linked to photos of Ablajan Bakri, Ablimit Ababakri and Abduehet Ababakri. The latter three photos are linked to a silhouette representing Tayir Abbas, next to which the word "Egypt" is displayed.]

Ablimit Ababakri: "In September 2012, my brother told me his wife had a baby there and asked me to come over. Nearly 30 people were there, including Tayir Abbas. One of them said, 'Let us work for Xinjiang's independence, for founding the Islamic Caliphate.' While talking with Abduehet, I found he was on good terms with some members of the group. They were key members of the ETIM (TIP). He wanted to join their organization. I said Tayir Abbas knew Shirzat Bawudun, who knew about the organization. After all, he was a police officer, we should ask Shirzat Bawudun when we got back."

Shirzat Bawudun: [sic] "From what they said, I thought they had found the right people or that organization."

Ablimit Ababakri: "Shirzat said, 'That's right. You should join the organization.'"

Shirzat Bawudun: "They had given more than 10 million yuan (US$1.4 million) to the ETIM (TIP) people."

Ablimit Ababakri: "Then Shirzat asked how much his half-million shares in the transport firm were worth. I said the shares plus dividends were worth some 1.2 million yuan. He said, 'You give all 1.2 million to Tayir Abbas and the ETIM (TIP) people as operation funding.'"

Shirzat Bawudun: "The two brothers told me they bought a 200-square-meter apartment for me in Cairo. I said I couldn't go and had to wait until I retired, and Tayir Abbas and his people could use it for the time being."

Ablimit Ababakri: "After saying this, he stressed three times, 'What I told you must not be told to a second person and must be kept secret."

Narrator: "In 2013, the ETIM (TIP) had a meeting and brought together some Uygur students. They were planning to send some to join the IS and work for 'jihad'. They were supposed to train for war. When they were ready to return, they could make greater contributions for the next step."

Abduehet Ababakri: "They had to do the ETIM (TIP) 'jihad' training. The aim was to turn these trainees into future successors of the ETIM (TIP)."

[On-screen diagram: A photo of Shirzat Bawudun is linked to photos of Ablajan Bakri, Ablimit Ababakri and Abduehet Ababakri. The latter three photos are linked to a silhouette representing Tayir Abbas, next to which the word "Egypt" is displayed.]

Narrator: "Police investigation shows that over 60 Uygur teenagers aged 14-18, have been sent overseas by the two brothers - Ablimit and Abduehet."

[On-screen: "Some joined ISIL"]

Narrator: "Some of them have joined the so-called Islamic State group, some have come back to Xinjiang."

[On-screen: "Some came back to Xinjiang"]

Ablimit Ababakri: "They said once Xinjiang was liberated, Shirzat would become the national leader of East Turkistan."

Shirzat Bawudun: "They appointed me the leader of ETIM (TIP) in Xinjiang and after nationhood, I'd be the leader. I was so excited and happy. I was muddle-headed."

Ablimit Ababakri: [sic] "He told us, 'When you work outside China, in China you must keep a low profile and work secretly. Don't draw the attention of public security and learn to be patient. You should wait for the chance.'"

Narrator: "Police say in 2015, during an official visit overseas, Shirzat Bawudun secretly met with key members of the ETIM (TIP) twice. He revealed anti-terrorism information in Xinjiang. And Shirzat Bawudun had his own strategy."

Shirzat Bawudun: "So I only rooted out those units already exposed and left alone those only suspected and being groomed. On the one hand, once they were ready, I'd have targets to strike. On the other hand, I could protect some of them. So the result was repeated strikes which just missed, and the ashes could burn again. After the strike, it's like chive roots. Prune the stalks and leaves, and fresh sprouts grow."

Murat Sheripjan: "Such arrangements gave terrorists an advantage. While we struggled to discover, the terrorists already knew. There was one of their own in our ranks. That's why they could act so boldly."

Ablajan Bakri: "Now I realize that Shirzat Bawudun had been using me all along. He was trying to use me as a front in Moyu to control the local clergy."

Ablimit Ababakri: "We were in a trap. We didn't clearly see Shirzat's true intentions. I should have seen through him earlier, but I didn't, and I didn't have the guts to do it."

Shirzat Bawudun: "I believe I kept it rather clandestine and well concealed. It's not easy to see through these. But one must wake from a dream."

===
Shirzat Bawudun
Two-year Suspended Death Sentence
Deprived of Political Rights for Life
===

Murat Sheripjan: "We have to first remove the 'two-faced persons' in our ranks. Otherwise, we can never remove the soil for terrorism."

Narrator: "Murat Sheripjan says even the term 'two-faced' doesn't properly describe such persons. They are the enemy, the enemy in the shadows."

===
Part Three
The Textbooks
===

===
Urumqi
===

Narrator: "In 2016, there were reports of errors in the 2003 and 2009 editions of the Uygur-language textbooks for primary and middle schools. An investigation followed. Shehide Yusup, who worked on these textbooks, showed us the problems."

Shehide Yusup (Art Editor, Xinjiang Education Publishing House): "These are textbooks published by our company. They contain many errors. I worked on the 2003 editions of the primary school textbooks, mainly in cover design and illustration coloring. Take this graphic for example. The national emblem is that of East Turkistan. It shouldn't appear in textbooks at all. This is the legend of seven heroic Uygur girls. It's all fabricated. Han Chinese soldiers trapped them at a cliff and they jumped to their death to defend their homeland. It's meant to incite ethnic hatred and it will misinform the students."

Shehide Yusup: "That's unimaginable. The mere thought of this would scare me."

===
Sattar Sawut
Fmr. Deputy Secretary, Education & Work Committee, Xinjiang
Fmr. Director General, Education Department, Xinjiang
Fmr. Leader, Basic Education Curriculum Reform Group, Xinjiang
===

Narrator: "An investigation shows that starting in 2002, the then Director General of the Xinjiang Education Department, Sattar Sawut, set up a special group, as a front for criminal activities."

[On-screen diagram: A photograph of Sattar Sawut is shown connected to photographs of Alimjan Memtimin, Abdurazaq Sayim and Tahir Nasir. The latter two are connected to photos of Yalqun Rozi and Wahitjan Osman.]

Narrator: "It included the Deputy Director General of the Education Department, the two consecutive presidents of the Xinjiang Education Publishing House, as well as two editors with radical separatist thoughts."

Sattar Sawut: "The idea was to use the power given by the Party and the people to spread our ethnic chauvinist sentiments and extremist errors among more Uygurs. It was meant to control their minds, influence them in childhood in order to turn them into separatists. In 2003, new Uygur-language textbooks were scheduled to be compiled for primary and middle schools. I was head of the Xinjiang Basic Education Curriculum Reform Group. So I saw an opportunity. I assigned Alimjan Memtimin and Abdurazaq Sayim to the project."

[Photographs of Alimjan Memtimin, Abdurazaq Sayim and Tahir Nasir are displayed on-screen.]

Sattar Sawut: "I had several meetings with them and instructed them about compiling the textbooks."

Abdurazaq Sayim (Fmr. President, Xinjiang Education Publishing House): "He said the textbooks were an excellent opportunity and it should proceed as we meant it to. It could help groom our 'successors'. So I picked Yalqun Rozi and Wahitjan Osman, who were quite persuasive, to join the committee. I instructed them to include more content on 'ethnic oppression' in the textbooks, mainly 'woeful tales' about the past. I asked them to add more Turkic heroes, especially those revolting against the state for independence."

[Photographs of Yalqun Rozi and Wahitjan Osman are displayed on-screen.]

Alimjan Memtimin (Fmr. Deputy Director General, Xinjiang Education Department): "Such textbooks would be approved and issued to all schools and allow many teachers to elaborate and incite ethnic hatred and such thoughts."

Narrator: "When Tahir Nasir succeeded Abdurazaq Sayim as president of the publishing house, he continued the editorial policy."

[Photographs of Abdurazaq Sayim and Tahir Nasir are displayed on-screen.]

Tahir Nasir (Fmr. President, Xinjiang Education Publishing House): "When Sattar and Alimjan approached me and proposed that the new textbooks should push religious extremism, my mind was excited and clear about the meaning."

Shehide Yusup: "The art director is supposed to handle all the visuals. But in making the 2003 and 2009 textbooks, the editors intervened quite a lot."

Suriya Mirhadam (Editor, Xinjiang Education Publishing House): "For the 2003 and 2009 textbooks, Wahitjan Osman and Yalqun Rozi were responsible for text content. They simultaneously served as text editors, publishing editors, and initial and final proofreaders. Exercising such authority violates publishing protocol. Their superiors arranged it. They put it into practice."

Narrator: "Police say Sattar Sawut acted unilaterally to determine textbook content. Yalqun Rozi and Wahitjan Osman were instructed to fabricate separatist material for the 2003 and 2009 textbooks."

Alimjan Memtimin: "The primary school Uygur textbooks are full of 'Pan-Islamism' and 'Pan-Turkism'. The historical figures in them were meant to encourage the kids to seek their cultural origins and roots from outside China."

Suriya Mirhadam: "The 2003 and 2009 textbooks contain a lot of gore, violence, terrorism and separatism. By distorting historical facts, they wanted to instill separatism in students and incite ethnic hatred, with the end of splitting the motherland."

Shehide Yusup: "As guidance for students, such textbooks would obscure and undermine their sense of national identity; also the students would be exposed to 'Pan-Islamism' and 'Pan-Turkism'."

Suriya Mirhadam: "Textbooks should include the national flag, emblem and anthem. But these textbooks had none."

Narrator: "Investigation found a large quantity of material inciting extremism was included in the textbooks. From 2004, these textbooks were used region-wide for 13 years."

Shehide Yusup: "They were using such textbooks from primary school through junior high. So the insidious effects must be enduring. Some might be led astray and even led to commit crimes."

Sattar Sawut: "Many participants in the July 5 Incident and following terrorist attacks had used our textbooks. I think we had ruined these children."

===
Atikem Rozi
Born: April 1991
Four-year sentence
===

Atikem Rozi: "When I was in junior high school, I learned some things from the textbooks. I also got the idea of doing something, too."

Kadir Memet: "The 'Three Evil Forces' have been trying to infiltrate our ideological sectors such as education, culture and religion. They've never given up. The sustained increase in terrorism in recent years is closely linked to such efforts."

Narrator: "Kadir Memet says the greatest danger often comes from the enemy within."

Alimjan Memtimin: "I am a double-dealing 'two-faced man'."

===
Sattar Sawut
Two-year Suspended Death Sentence
Deprived of Political Rights for Life
===

===
Alimjan Memtimin
Life Sentence
===

===
Abdurazaq Sayim
Life Sentence
===

===
Tahir Nasir
Life Sentence
===

Narrator: "The war in the shadows is being fought on many fronts. Kadir Memet says ideology is only one of the battlegrounds. Suriya Mirhadam was responsible for editing part of the new editions of the 2019 and 2020 textbooks."

Suriya Mirhadam: "This is Part One of the first grade's Uygur-language textbook. Here's the national emblem, and the national flag, and the statement 'We are Chinese'. Here is the flag-raising ceremony."

Narrator: "Suriya Mirhadam says the Kazak- and Kirgiz-language textbooks have the same content."

Reporter: "What are we telling the students with these pictures?"

Suriya Mirhadam: "They should know that they are citizens of the People's Republic of China, that Xinjiang is an inalienable part of the motherland. The textbooks are meant to keep students from separatism and ensure they have a sound mind so they can serve their family, their society and their nation."

===
Part Four
The Black Hands
===

Abduweli (Xinjiang Internet Information Office): "The internet is truly a battlefield without the smoke. I'm a special ops soldier. I identify and neutralize the threats, so youngsters won't be misled. I wipe the propaganda from the internet. I think our work is very meaningful. The violent ETIM (TIP) audios and videos have a domestic target, especially in Xinjiang, with specific purposes. The groups they try to recruit are mainly young people. Terrorist audios and videos are often well-concealed. They use special packaging, like encryption. And they use covert channels to transfer and share the content. Some are camouflaged, so to say. It looks like a regular video, but when it reaches a specific point, it will switch to terrorist content."

Narrator: "'Abduweli' has been working at the Xinjiang Internet Information Office since it was established in 2013. From his experience, the online materials are categorized as preaching, training, making weaponry, and specific groups like women and students."

Abduweli: "For a time after 2008, about ten each year on average. Since 2012, there has been an increase, with 200 to 300 each year."

Mirzat (Police Officer): "The terrorist audios and videos actually serve as their initial approach. It resembles a pyramid scheme in a way. It tries to brainwash its audience repeatedly. If the brainwashing succeeds, people will join the violent terrorist activities. Such activities aim to cause maximal impact at minimal cost, that is, maximal destruction. That's their aim."

Narrator: "The fight against the criminal activities to spread radicalization materials has been going on for some 20 years. Police officer 'Mirzat' says nearly 90 percent of young people participating in terror attacks have watched such products. The main sources are from outside of China, mostly from the ETIM (TIP)."

Mirzat: "The terrorist content often wraps itself in religion and conceals its ulterior motive through such pretense. The observation and analysis in recent years indicate that the content has been produced by professional teams. They used to distribute the content at specific websites. But now they are using regular social media apps and point-to-point messaging apps. The storage devices are mostly hard disks. Other common devices are flash drives, storage cards, smartphones, tablets and so on."

Mirzat: "Here are the storage devices we seized in 2014 and 2015; they were all used to store terrorist audio and video."

Reporter: "Where did the content come from?"

Mirzat: "They were all downloaded from outside China."

Mirzat: "These are some CD-ROMs. All the content promotes violent terrorism."

Narrator: "Young people have always been the key recruitment targets."

Abduweli Heber: "They showed us ETIM (TIP) members doing physical training and making explosive devices. They asked us to join the ETIM (TIP). And they urged us to learn the skills so that we could use them some day. That is, after returning to Xinjiang, we could carry out 'jihad' and 'hejiras'."

Narrator: "Dolqun Yalqun went abroad for an advanced degree. While there, he became involved with a terrorist organization, the ETIM (TIP). In 2019, Dolqun was sentenced to 7 years for inciting terrorism and other crimes."

Dolqun Yalqun: "My thinking was gradually eaten away. I began to regard people with no religious faith as infidels. I now think the ideological damage is even greater. The philosophical influence can be gradual and subtle. Once I was taken in by such religious extremism, the pursuit of my life goals shifted to those of religious faith. I began to seek self-fulfillment in this regard. I felt all I'd done was worthless."

Reporter: "How can you help them change?"

Dolqun Yalqun: "I can explain my current thinking to them, and this will inspire them to think for themselves. Through these lessons and examples, people can re-establish their hopes for a future life."

Narrator: "Girls were also recruited."

Dilnur Eziz: "They were all like me. At first it's just curiosity, and then only going to the Quran lectures. It was a steady trickle of indoctrination. At first I thought nothing of it, but just felt the inside atmosphere was off, everyone wearing black. Watching videos, then training, then going to do stuff in some countries, like this, like that."

Mother of Dilnur: "I never regret she came back."

Reporter: "And if you hadn't come back?"

Dilnur Eziz: "I don't know where I would be."

Mother of Dilnur: "She was quite a handful, but very smart and sweet."

Dilnur Eziz: "At first I hated myself for going there. Then I came to learn enough to conclude that they had ulterior motives. Otherwise it wouldn't be free. At first they sweet-talked me, then they told me you must wear this and must do that. I think if I had stayed there for a long time, I could possibly become like those others."

Mother of Dilnur: "I hate them. They led my daughter astray."

Dilnur Eziz: "I feel deceived and used. I hate them so much."

Mother of Dilnur: "Whenever she could call, she said 'Mom, I miss you and want to go home soon.'"

Dilnur Eziz: "I regret it very much."

---

Reporter: "What's the greatest meaning in life?"

Dolqun Yalqun: "It is to walk the right path and realize one's value. I think this is also what the Quran says. People should do good works, deal with others harmoniously."

Reporter: "Do you dare face this matter (when made public)?"

Dolqun Yalqun: "I can totally face this. I've made mistakes, and I don't want to see more people follow my example."

Reporter: "You're not afraid this will have a negative influence on you?"

Dolqun Yalqun: "I'm not afraid."

---

Abduweli Heber: "When I sleep at night, I always dream about them. I dream about dinner with my family and a happy life. I dream about playing with my younger brothers. I really miss hearing them call me 'Brother, Brother'. I also want to go back to study and have fun with my friends. Although I want all this very much, I've committed a crime and these chances can never come back."

Mother of Dilnur: "I hate those who took her away. If they hadn't done that, we would be having a normal life."

Dilnur Eziz: "I'm sorry for them."

Mother of Dilnur: "[She could be at home] helping me and talking with me."

Dilnur Eziz: "Her beloved daughter has grown up. I know I was wrong."

Narrator: "Lawmakers also grapple with cause and effect."

Li Juan (Chairperson, Legal Affairs Committee, People's Congress of Xinjiang): "Among the Measures for Implementation of the Counter-Terrorism Law for Xinjiang, Section 7 is about educational management. Articles 38 and 39 provide for the establishment of vocational training centers and their training content and methods. They serve as a solid legal basis."

Li Juan: "These are common practices in many other countries. We've seen such measures adopted in Singapore and Britain. They all use such practices in educating people misled by extremist thinking, including vocational training centers. It's an international practice. It's about how to educate and rectify."

Li Juan: "The Autonomous Region also enacted the Internet Security Regulations. Online dissemination of violent content, especially incitement, are our crackdown priority."

Reporter: "What if some internet companies don't follow the rules?"

Li Juan: [sic] "Then we will hold them accountable. When we saw some young people carry out violent crimes and being charged, we felt they were actually victims. They were victims of those who incited them. They themselves didn't commit terrorism but they incited others. So it was based on the harm to society, China's Criminal Law stipulates that we hold you responsible for the making and dissemination of violent terrorist audio and video materials. Even if we block violent terrorist content, terrorism and extremism will not cease and they will try to find new ways. Terrorism is one of their methods. So I believe the challenge will remain for a long time."

Mirzat (Police Officer): "The challenges are more likely from outside China. The invisible hand of incitement from outside China has always been trying to mislead our people."

Abduweli (Xinjiang Internet Information Office): "Now we're focusing on identifying the source of terrorist content and taking targeted measures. When such content appears on internet platforms, we can find it as early as possible and then block it."

Mirzat: "We used to watch a number of spots, but now we're covering the whole picture. We have to cut off the paths by which terrorist content enters our country."

Abduweli: "We should work with other countries regarding the sources, including national security cooperation. Through such cooperation we can curb the terrorist organizations' living space. As long as terrorist organizations are out there, we can't relent in cracking down on such audio and video content."

Mirzat: "The ultimate goal is to uproot extremism and leave it no soil to grow back. That is the way to solve the problem effectively."

Kadir Memet: "Four years without violent terrorism. This is a preliminary victory of our previous work. It's hard won."

Adil (Police Officer): "I have two kids. But in a year, I have to be away for some 300 days. Why? Because the duty on our shoulders is so heavy. I hope more police officers' kids can have more time with their fathers."

Narrator: "'Adil's' greatest hope is to walk out of the War in the Shadows... in a safe and secure Xinjiang."

[Credits begin. A propaganda song about Xinjiang plays to clips from various state media documentaries.]

===
Special thanks to:
The China Society for Human Rights Studies
The Xinjiang Development Research Center
The Public Security Department of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region
===

investigation announcement

“According to information from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region Disciplinary Commission: the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region People's Government Party leadership group member, Secretary General, and General Office Party Group Secretary Alimjan Memet'imin is suspected of seriously breaching (Party) discipline, and is currently undergoing a group investigation. (Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region Disciplinary Commission)” - Supervisory Department of the Central Disciplinary Commission (June 28, 2015)

photos before/after detention

supplementary materials

entry created on: 2020-04-27

entry last modified on: 2021-05-18

last update from testifier(s): 2021-04-01