Turkey under the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who aspires to be the next leader of the Muslim community (Ummah) has been surreptitiously repatriating Uighur Muslims to China, the Telegraph reported on Sunday (July 26).

According to this report, around 50,000 Uighurs have sought refuge in Turkey due repression in China. Erdoğan who portrays himself as a protector of Muslims across the world and had recently converted Hagia Sophia into a mosque has however washed them off his hands to get Chinese money into Turkey.

China has put 1.5 million Uighurs in concentration camps or as they call reeducation camps across China.

In the last decade, China has been slowly increasing its influence across central Asia and the Uighurs in Turkey are fearful of China’s reach.

In recent years, Turkey’s relationship with Europe and America have been prickly and the growing economic dependence of Ankara on Beijing (brought Turkey closer to China) might lead it to acquiesce to Chinese pressure instead of protecting the Uighurs, The Telegraph said.

Turkey had sent several Uighurs to countries like Tajikistan where China has a lot of influence to secure their extradition.

İbrahim Ergin, a lawyer who specialises in deportation cases, told the Telegraph that“So they [China] try to make their lives as miserable as they can, and get them sent to other countries where possible. As China and Turkey’s relations have got better, it’s the Uighurs who have lost.

Ismael Cengiz, a prominent Uighur activist in Turkey said, “There is so much money at stake, our cause is only second to that.” There are threats, and they are systematic. China wants us to think they can get us anywhere.”

According to Cengiz, Beijing’s investment has come at a cost for Uighurs who again will have to suffer at the hands of the communist regime. The public support espoused by Turkey is cosmetic because, under the bilateral agreements with China’s Justice Ministry, Ankara has to investigate Chinese complaints against individuals.

As per the Telegraph report, Uighurs are spending months in detention and deportation centres in Turkey without charge. This injustice is being carried out at the behest of the Chinese judicial demands.

China has invested billions in developing Turkish infrastructure under its Belt & Road Initiative strategy and plans to invest $6 billion in Turkey by the end of 2021.