Uyghurs, Prisoners of the Absurd

Uyghurs are a Turkic Islamic group living in the Xinjiang Uyghur autonomous region in China, an area they refer to as East Turkistan. A 1997 march for religious freedom resulted in their violent oppression by the Communist Party. UYGHURS, PRISONERS OF THE ABSURD follows the travails of three members of this persecuted group who escaped China for the Middle East, only to be captured and sold as terrorists to American forces. Following 9/11, the United States announced a reward for information leading to the capture of Taliban leaders. Sold by Afghanis for U.S. dollars, the Uyghurs were sent to Guantánamo, linked with no evidence to worldwide terror networks. Civil rights advocates helped them challenge their detention in federal court. Yet even after a judge ordered them freed, they continued to languish in captivity because the U.S. had nowhere to send them. The Uyghurs’ horrifyingly surreal odyssey should never have happened. We must not allow it to happen again. (In English, Uyghur, and Mandarin with subtitles) – B.B.