China’s internment camps for Uighur Muslims

China has been accused of detaining up to a million ethnic Muslims in its western Xinjiang region. The government says the prison-like structures are “vocational schools” to educate people influenced by extremism

NUMBER OF FACILITIES*
According to survey of government records

Over 180 facilities in total

Xinjiang: Home to 12 million ethnic Uighur and other Muslim minorities

Hami 1
Karamay 2
Bortala 4
Tacheng 5
Altay 6 
Changji 8
Kizilsu 10
Bayingolin 12
Ili 14
Aksu 18
Hotan 20
Turpan 21
Urumqi 24
Kashi 37

KAZAKHSTAN 
KYRGYZSTAN
MONGOLIA
XINJIANG REGION


Beijing
CHINA

300km 200 miles

*Run by Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps


2014: “Vocational education and training centres” first appear following wave of deadly violence in Xinjiang, linked to perceived government campaign of repression against Uighur community

2017: Surge in spending by justice bureaus throughout Xinjiang – driven largely by huge cost of building and running facilities – amounts to nearly three billion yuan ($432m), or 577 percent more than planned

Apr 2017: Local governments begin posting wide variety of tenders related to facilities, including surveillance systems, razor wire, infrared monitoring devices, tear gas, stun guns and spiked clubs

Early 2018: Equipment purchases by one county in Hotan prefecture include such non-educational items as 2,768 police batons, 550 electric cattle prods, 1,367 pairs of handcuffs and 2,792 cans of pepper spray



Source: AFP     © GRAPHIC NEWS