Uighur-American Activist Criticizes China; Her Aunt, Sister Go Missing

Just six days after Rushan Abbas spoke on a panel that criticized China’s treatment of the ethnic minority Uighurs, her aunt and sister disappeared. Abbas’ family assumed they were sent to the “re-education camps,” or internment centers where the Chinese government holds around one million Uighurs in the country’s far western Xinjiang region. Abbas is an American citizen and activist who has campaigned extensively for the rights of Uighurs in China, who are reportedly subject to religious discrimination, invasive surveillance, torture and brainwashing. Forum hears Abbas’ story and considers the plight of China’s Uighur population.