The oppression that’s being done by the Chinese government towards the Uyghurs
has lately been the hot topic in Indonesia.
The conversation gets heatened up after the Wall Street Journal
published a report saying that the government of China
is pouring in lots of money in many kinds of program.
It’s purposed to convince the Indonesian people
that there’s no violation of human rights in Xinjiang.
One of the programs is to invite Indonesian clerics,
politicians, and journalists from Indonesia
to directly visiting Xinjiang.
The reeducation camp, massively built by the Chinese government in Xinjiang
officially has started operation in 2017,
but began to be criticized by other nations in 2018.
UN human rights council has been criticizing China government
to close the access of the independent monitor to enter Xinjiang.
In China, my staff have not been give access to the countries.
At October 16th, 2018, government-owned TV broadcaster, China Central Television (CCTV)
released a short documentary about the term, what they called
Xinjiang Vocational Education and Training Centers.
The attempts to change the global attention is by inviting diplomats from other countries
to visit Xinjiang at the end of December 2018.
Also joined on the group was ambassador of Indonesia in China,
Oratmangun Djauhari.
At the end of February 2019,
15 representations of Nahdlatul Ulama,
Muhammadiyah, and MUI came to visit Xinjiang.
After a few days
some of Indonesian journalists fly to join the group.
Part of the agenda was even taken as a snippet
in the propaganda documentary
broadcasted by the CCTV weeks later.
From that documentary,
we can see the invitees visiting the camps,
which being reported by the western media as the concentration camps.
Through satellite imagery,
we knew the locations of the camps visited
by the group from Indonesia.
Our analysis found many evidence
China trying to hidden many information.
The darkest part of the camp
did not reveal to Indonesian contingent.
There are four camps visited by the Indonesian group
Camp in Karakax,
Kashgar,
Shule,
and Artux.
This is the video broadcasted by
NU channel.
We identified this video,
was taken from this location.
It’s noticed by the structure of the building floor plan besides it.
This camp is located in the city center of Karakax district.
Satellite imagery per 2015 shows the area of the location
was still a vacant land.
After it was built,
we can see a border on every building
similar to barbed wire fence
like in a prison.
But on January 2019,
or a month before the vacation program,
this fence had vanished.
Looks like this camp is only intended for teaching and learning purposes
only some of the detainees live there.
The majority of detainees were placed in a camp
located 3 kilometers to the south.
A tender document said
that the location was used to be a logistic warehouse,
but then was converted as reeducation camp
with large 33.000 hectare and could hold 6000 detainee.
There’s also another camp
that is only 2 kilometers away.
It still can be seen the condition inside the camp
surrounded by barbed wire.
Besides that,
there’s also a camp located 14 kilometers far to the south.
Local people said this camp is the biggest one in Karakax
with an area of ​​70  hectares.
This camp has
a detention room and
a military barrack.
Another camp is in Shule.
This photo was taken by Kumparan reporter,
Marcia Audita.
This photo, it’s taken at this point.
We can see that from the building construction,
and also the wall behind it.
If Kumparan journalist came 6 months earlier,
she would’ve seen something so different.
Awhile ago, there was this building on the front.
Access to the main building was insulated by the barbed wire.
A month before the Indonesian group came,
the building and the fence were all gone.
This photo was taken by liputan6 reporter,
Rizki Akbar Hasan.
This photo was take at this point.
On September,
this building was still standing
and a barbed wire curbed the building.
On October,
barbed wire had gone.
On December,
the building had be destroyed.
One day after Indonesian clerics went to Karakax,
they came to this camp.
The location this camp is in Kashgar.
The clerics went inside
this building
and exited it from here.
Then walked into
this building
and went out.
And they entered this canteen.
A month before, the head of Antara bureau chief in Beijing,
Irfan IImie took a video on this location.
Actually, the group didn’t come to the entire area.
This part of the area,
is prohibited to be visited.
These buildings are insulated from one another,
and isolated by concrete walls.
We have to pass this security post to enter the building.
Do you know that in the document tender
was also being stated that in this camp
there were 1.400 surveillance cameras.
NBC reporter,
Keir Simmons.
Also questioned the gaffes
when he came there last October.
Another camp that Indonesian journalists visited
was in Artux.
This was taken by Kumparan reporter.
This was take from this point.
It’s seen from a basketball court
and a building behind it.
Another picture was taken by IDN Times chief of editor
Uni Lubis.
The journalists seem like has been deceived.
They thought large camp was only this.
The fact is, The Artux camp was 10 times bigger.
The darkest part of the camp in the southern area
was never shown to the journalists.
If journalist had been given the access
to cross the street.
They would’ve found a student barrack similar to a prison.
The extensive use of the barbed wire
was obvious blockading every building.
The security layers their use were up to two layers.
Moving further to the south,
you can see one block of building who was more like a supermax prison
than a vocational school.
In every corner, there is a watch tower.
Three layers barbed wire and concrete for the security.
One.
Two.
Three.
Inside camp, people thought that the camp would be scary.
It’s a vocational training centre.
I cannot say that there was any torture,
because there was no such thing like that.
After all, they’re not that dumb to show us the torment.
It's impossible.
We saw it with our own eyes that it was not a concentration camp,
like in novel The Gulag Archipelago written by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn,
It was not like that.
It was very nice
like a pesantren (islamic boarding school).
Even better than that.
I mean, many people said this is a prison
Oh, no.. eeeeee.. eee
There are some buildings in one area but...
But... I don't....
I don't...
I don’t remember anything building like this.
Yes, we can feel there’s manipulation,
but not entirely.
It’s true that there is a vocational training centre. And they didn't manipulate it.
If there is any improvement structure building
it’s just the same as how you want your house to be nice and tidy when there’s a guest coming.
The Chinese Government did the exact same thing.
At the end of the day,
the invitation intended to assure that Xinjiang was doing well
was all nothing but a big fat lie.
