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We Uyghurs Have No Say: An Imprisoned Writer Speaks
In Xinjiang, the large northwest region of China, the government has imprisoned more than a million Uyghurs in re-education camps. One of the incarcerated--whose sentence, unlike most others, has no end date--is Ilham Tohti, an intellectual and economist, a prolific writer, and formerly the host of a website, Uyghur Online. In 2014, Tohti was arrested; accused of advocating separatism, violence, and the overthrow of the Chinese government; subjected to a two-day trial; and sentenced to life. Nothing has been heard from him since.
Here are Tohti's own words, a collection of his plain-spoken calls for justice, scholarly explanations of the history of Xinjiang, and poignant personal reflections. While his courage and outspokenness about the plight of China's Muslim minorities is extraordinary, these essays sound a measured insistence on peace and just treatment for the Uyghurs.
Winner of the PEN/Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award and the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought while imprisoned, this book is nonetheless the only way to hear from a man who has been called "a Uyghur Mandela".
Here are Tohti's own words, a collection of his plain-spoken calls for justice, scholarly explanations of the history of Xinjiang, and poignant personal reflections. While his courage and outspokenness about the plight of China's Muslim minorities is extraordinary, these essays sound a measured insistence on peace and just treatment for the Uyghurs.
Winner of the PEN/Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award and the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought while imprisoned, this book is nonetheless the only way to hear from a man who has been called "a Uyghur Mandela".
193 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 15, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
December 7, 2022
4.5 stars
I learnt a LOT about Uyghurs and the history of their struggle 👏🏾
I learnt a LOT about Uyghurs and the history of their struggle 👏🏾
October 28, 2022
A collection of essays, public statements, and interviews by the Uyghur writer and academic İlham Tohti. These date from 2005-2014, just before Tohti's imprisonment; his family claims they have not heard from him since 2017. Many of the writings were hosted on the website uyghur.biz, and since that website was taken down, the publication of this volume serves to disseminate writings which were no longer publicly available.
Tohti, an economist by training, focused on the economic issues of the Xinjing Uyghur Autonomous Region: income inequality between the majority Han Chinese population and various minorities (Kyrgyz, Kazakh, Hui, and Uyghur), hiring discrimination in the civil services, the de facto sidelining of the Uyghur language, and so on. He is ready to denounce violent extremism; but he notes with growing concern the bans on "normal religious practices", such as the wearing of headscarves. The dramatic growth of the Han Chinese population in Xinjiang, he contends, has led to the de facto marginalization of the Uyghurs.
Far from being only a critic, he has also put forward suggestions for reform - promotion of Uyghurs within local government, bilingual education, hiring programs, religious non-discrimination. He has continued to cite the existing law of the People's Republic of China to make his case, particularly the 1982 Constitution, and the 1984 Law of the People’s Republic of China on Regional Ethnic Autonomy. He has continued to point to relatively good periods for the Uyghur population in the 1970s and early 1980s. Reasonable accommodations would therefore promote social stability.
Unfortunately, it was not to be. Even the most modest efforts at constructive criticism were treated with extreme harshness. After riots broke out in Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang, in 2009, the central government began a harsh crackdown. In 2014, the same year that Tohti was imprisoned, the CCP initiated the "Strike Hard Campaign Against Violent Terrorism". Nominally, this would be against separatism or religious extremism, the Uyghurs have been targets of political repression, group arrests, incarceration in "vocational education" facilities, and there are credible reports of mass sterilization and familial separation. His voice was silenced for now, and that is only one sign of a greater atrocity.
Tohti, an economist by training, focused on the economic issues of the Xinjing Uyghur Autonomous Region: income inequality between the majority Han Chinese population and various minorities (Kyrgyz, Kazakh, Hui, and Uyghur), hiring discrimination in the civil services, the de facto sidelining of the Uyghur language, and so on. He is ready to denounce violent extremism; but he notes with growing concern the bans on "normal religious practices", such as the wearing of headscarves. The dramatic growth of the Han Chinese population in Xinjiang, he contends, has led to the de facto marginalization of the Uyghurs.
Far from being only a critic, he has also put forward suggestions for reform - promotion of Uyghurs within local government, bilingual education, hiring programs, religious non-discrimination. He has continued to cite the existing law of the People's Republic of China to make his case, particularly the 1982 Constitution, and the 1984 Law of the People’s Republic of China on Regional Ethnic Autonomy. He has continued to point to relatively good periods for the Uyghur population in the 1970s and early 1980s. Reasonable accommodations would therefore promote social stability.
Unfortunately, it was not to be. Even the most modest efforts at constructive criticism were treated with extreme harshness. After riots broke out in Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang, in 2009, the central government began a harsh crackdown. In 2014, the same year that Tohti was imprisoned, the CCP initiated the "Strike Hard Campaign Against Violent Terrorism". Nominally, this would be against separatism or religious extremism, the Uyghurs have been targets of political repression, group arrests, incarceration in "vocational education" facilities, and there are credible reports of mass sterilization and familial separation. His voice was silenced for now, and that is only one sign of a greater atrocity.
March 11, 2022
Writings from a personal perspective that help to illuminate the plight of Uyghurs in China.
Full review to come.
Full review to come.
August 3, 2024
This felt like a timely read with Beijing brokering a unity agreement between Fatah, Hamas, and other Palestinian groups this week. Ilham Tohti, in one of his articles, talks about the “Palestinization” of the Uyghur people, likening the segregation and state-sponsored Han migration in East Turkestan to Israel’s apartheid and state-sponsored settlements throughout Palestine.
Despite China’s myth of preferential policy for ethnic minorities, its ethnic policy is almost wholly centered around suppressing the 3 forces: terrorism, separatism, and religious extremism. Rather than fulfilling its promise of ethnic regional autonomy, the state’s focus on quelling any dissent breeds more anger, distrust, and hatred toward the state. At the same time, as it provokes religious extremism and separatist ideals among Uyghurs, it also promotes a sense of Han chauvinism that counterbalances the Uyghur hatred of the Chinese state. Everybody loses.
Unfortunately, reading this felt like all that I’ve read about Tibet. The same intentions are present: the intentions to erase language and culture, to indoctrinate the youth, to define even the mildest religious expression as extremism. The state’s hand is present in everything. It extracts and monopolizes industry through state-owned enterprises. It claims democracy and representation for Uyghurs in Xinjiang without actual Uyghurs in executive positions. The state exploits, abuses, and extracts value from the Uyghurs at every turn, and when a tiny faction of Uyghurs express their discontent, all are punished.
In reading Ilham Tohti’s writings, it’s so clear that his life imprisonment is unfair and unjust. He’s so clearly not a separatist, even callng himself a Chinese patriot at one point. His solutions are pragmatic and rooted in policy; the benefits to the Uyghur people are always clear, but the benefits to China and its stability are always just as clear.
While Beijing is sponsoring Palestinian unity on the global stage to secure its own interests in the Middle East, its worth remembering that the Uyghurs exist, and that Ilham Tohti is 10 years into his life sentence on separatist charges. I really, really hope that he’s still alive.
Despite China’s myth of preferential policy for ethnic minorities, its ethnic policy is almost wholly centered around suppressing the 3 forces: terrorism, separatism, and religious extremism. Rather than fulfilling its promise of ethnic regional autonomy, the state’s focus on quelling any dissent breeds more anger, distrust, and hatred toward the state. At the same time, as it provokes religious extremism and separatist ideals among Uyghurs, it also promotes a sense of Han chauvinism that counterbalances the Uyghur hatred of the Chinese state. Everybody loses.
Unfortunately, reading this felt like all that I’ve read about Tibet. The same intentions are present: the intentions to erase language and culture, to indoctrinate the youth, to define even the mildest religious expression as extremism. The state’s hand is present in everything. It extracts and monopolizes industry through state-owned enterprises. It claims democracy and representation for Uyghurs in Xinjiang without actual Uyghurs in executive positions. The state exploits, abuses, and extracts value from the Uyghurs at every turn, and when a tiny faction of Uyghurs express their discontent, all are punished.
In reading Ilham Tohti’s writings, it’s so clear that his life imprisonment is unfair and unjust. He’s so clearly not a separatist, even callng himself a Chinese patriot at one point. His solutions are pragmatic and rooted in policy; the benefits to the Uyghur people are always clear, but the benefits to China and its stability are always just as clear.
While Beijing is sponsoring Palestinian unity on the global stage to secure its own interests in the Middle East, its worth remembering that the Uyghurs exist, and that Ilham Tohti is 10 years into his life sentence on separatist charges. I really, really hope that he’s still alive.
February 28, 2025
Ilham Tohti is an Uyghur economist, university professor and scholar who since 2014 has been serving a life sentence in a Chinese prison. He was accused of advocating separatism, violence, and the overthrow of the Chinese government (which he often emphasised in his texts he advocated AGAINST) and sentenced after just two days of trial. No one has heard from him since.
The book “We Uyghurs Have No Say” is a collection of his articles and essays, in which Tohti presents recommendations and advice for the improvement of the economy of Xinjiang (East Turkestan) and shares the Uyghur perspective on peaceful coexistence. It is hard to comprehend how the Chinese government could twist his very clearly expressed opinions and understand the opposite of what he advocated for. Tohti is not an activist and does not support separatism - this is clear from his texts. But he wishes for Xinjiang’s autonomy and has always promoted activities for greater exchange and understanding between Han Chinese people and Uyghurs, while opposing Han chauvinism (as the preamble to the Chinese Constitution used to read).
Tohti’s well-structured and eloquent articles are very readable and though I had already been familiar with the plight of Uyghur people through the book by Rebiya Kadeer (which I read over 15 years ago) and numerous articles I read in recent years, it was interesting to learn about Tohti’s perspective and his work. So often he mentioned how much he loved his country and wished to see his homeland prosperous and developed as the interior of China. He stated: “I hope that China, having endured many misfortunes, will become a great nation of harmonious inter-ethnic coexistence and develop a splendid civilization.” He later promises to devote himself to achieving this goal. I hope for this future of China and Xinjiang as well. It is a shame that the Chinese government cannot see the good in its intellectuals and support mutual understanding between various ethnic groups.
“Use of administrative means to keep ethnic groups together is, in essence, a use of force that breeds division, whereas tolerance as a means to encourage dialogue will lead to mutual harmony and unity.”
The book “We Uyghurs Have No Say” is a collection of his articles and essays, in which Tohti presents recommendations and advice for the improvement of the economy of Xinjiang (East Turkestan) and shares the Uyghur perspective on peaceful coexistence. It is hard to comprehend how the Chinese government could twist his very clearly expressed opinions and understand the opposite of what he advocated for. Tohti is not an activist and does not support separatism - this is clear from his texts. But he wishes for Xinjiang’s autonomy and has always promoted activities for greater exchange and understanding between Han Chinese people and Uyghurs, while opposing Han chauvinism (as the preamble to the Chinese Constitution used to read).
Tohti’s well-structured and eloquent articles are very readable and though I had already been familiar with the plight of Uyghur people through the book by Rebiya Kadeer (which I read over 15 years ago) and numerous articles I read in recent years, it was interesting to learn about Tohti’s perspective and his work. So often he mentioned how much he loved his country and wished to see his homeland prosperous and developed as the interior of China. He stated: “I hope that China, having endured many misfortunes, will become a great nation of harmonious inter-ethnic coexistence and develop a splendid civilization.” He later promises to devote himself to achieving this goal. I hope for this future of China and Xinjiang as well. It is a shame that the Chinese government cannot see the good in its intellectuals and support mutual understanding between various ethnic groups.
“Use of administrative means to keep ethnic groups together is, in essence, a use of force that breeds division, whereas tolerance as a means to encourage dialogue will lead to mutual harmony and unity.”
September 26, 2022
A collection of essays and speeches written by a Uyghur intellectual years before the current catastrophe (some call it a Genocide) of imprisoning and indoctrinating the Uyghur population commenced, and years before he was imprisoned for life based on “separatist” crimes. Tohti had the foresight to understand the potential ramifications of China’s ethnic policies that are supposed to squelch separatism, religious extremism, and terrorism, which unfortunately have played out: Chinese officials are afraid that ethnic autonomy will lead to a separatist movement, and therefore they believe that ethnic assimilation (e.g., indoctrination) is the only answer. It’s heartbreaking to read how an entire ethnic community has been torn apart, and literally annihilated.
May 18, 2022
Welp, this is one thing I knew I didn’t fully know. Invokes the current (but not new) instability between China and Taiwan. What’s this obsession with erasure of Uyghur people? What’s the obsession with getting back to what used to be? China + Taiwan, Russia + Ukraine + USSR. This obsession with power.
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August 29, 2022fascinating, especially for his faith in the Chinese government to reform and proposals for a reintegration of Uighur populations into mainstream China (to coexist with the Han), and for his open distaste for the United States— his criticisms of which are all fair and true!!!
August 29, 2024
Solid work. I find it strange (for lack of a better word) that even for some of the most median, calm, agreeable, dare I say non-radical, like Ilham Tohti are seen as dangerous and separatist for wanting to keep their traditions/culture alive. CCP they could never make me like you. I enjoyed the journals/interviews/essays. Really made me reflect, and learn more about the plight of the Uyghurs. Also, less than 200 pages so very much digestible.
June 17, 2023
An excellent primer for issues in Xinjiang and for Tohti’s influence/work in general. Purely as a piece of writing/political argument, it wasn’t always the most engaging — these pieces feel fragmentary or somehow incompletely fleshed out/missing context — but that’s likely a product of how they were written for specific points in time/particular audiences on the internet, rather than as standalone essays. And you can sense how careful he was being to stay within the governments red lines /speak in their language, even as the anger is clear
October 26, 2022
Just like calling the Jewish genocide the Holocaust, we should never call the Uyghurs’ region as Xinjiang, as that is a name claimed by China, or the Han people as Ilham Tohti cleverly refers to them as. The Han people heavily criticise colonisation in the West, however the option for them is to place native peoples in concentration camps. I hope Western Governments will be able to do more to support Uyghurs, instead of every now and then calling it “genocide”, as it is. Our history of colonisation will never be reversed, but if we demonstrate our ability to learn from history by supporting others who are currently the victims of it, that’s when we can finally silence the CCP and those responsible.
September 13, 2023
It is a medley of a book that contains a host of articles, essays, statements and interviews by the imprisoned author. An essential read if you want to understand the diabolical Chinese regime and its repressive policies towards the Uyghurs. The book is totally disjointed as well as patchy and seems to suffer from poor editing. The first half of the book does not read well, possibly because of poor translation.
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July 26, 2025This is something I knew nothing about before and I wanted to learn. If someone gets arrested for critiquing their government I want to read what they have to say. An acquaintance accused me of reading “anti-communist propaganda” which made me all the more glad I picked it up. Nothing in this book read as radical or anti-China, to me. Oppression is bad!!!!
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January 27, 2023For me, this was a bit of a dry read. It is informative and worth reading if you have interest in the suffering of our fellow men and women (Uyghurs). I stand with the Uyghurs and condemn the barbaric ccp, and their heinous treatment of ethnic minorities.
April 25, 2025
He was so moderate and rational, and had no intention of opposing the Communist Party or independence, that his arrest was despairing. If the Chinese Communist Party continues to deal with people who talks about the problems instead of solving the problems themselves, they will definitely pay the price soon.
October 19, 2023
Really great starting point for learning about what is happening in China to the Uyghur people, really insightful and well presented with mixed medium.
August 13, 2025
This isn’t as beautifully written as Waiting to be Arrested at Night but I’m very glad I read it.
October 23, 2025
The more I learn about the Uyghurs and their history, the more angry I get!
I won't lie. This was a hard book to get through but it's so important to learn about these things!
I won't lie. This was a hard book to get through but it's so important to learn about these things!
May 5, 2023
A very heart-breaking volume. See my review here: https://newpol.org/book-review-essay-...
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews