Thailand Routes Uyghur Cases To Courts

Thailand will send two Uyghur men through its court system to determine their future status, a decision that delays a potential return to China. The men, who have been in Thai custody for more than a decade, were released from prison in late October and are now held at the Suan Plu immigration detention center in Bangkok. This procedural shift marks a departure from previous deportations of Uyghurs from the country.

Chaipruak Doungprapat, head of Thailand’s National Security Council, announced the plan on Wednesday. He stated that the agency will not make a direct administrative decision on their deportation. Instead, the case will proceed through the courts, allowing the men to present a defense. If the court rules in their favor, the men may be sent to another country for resettlement. If the court rules against them, they will be extradited according to existing treaties.

“But if the court rules against them, they will be extradited according to the treaty. This is the judicial process,” Doungprapat said.

The men have publicly pleaded to stay out of China. In letters shared last week by Kannavee Suebsang, founder of the Peace Rights Foundation, one of the men wrote, “Every time we are worrying from China to take back us.” He added, “We aren’t terrorist.” Suebsang, a former lawmaker, represents the two men in their legal efforts.

China has sought the return of these individuals as part of a larger group of 300 Uyghurs detained by Thai authorities in 2014. Chinese officials described the group as terrorists at the time of detention. The two men currently in Thailand are aged 26 and 35. They were part of a larger group fleeing China near the Malaysian border in 2014.

Mao Ning, a spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, addressed the situation on Wednesday. She stated that cooperation between China and Thailand in combating cross-border crimes, including illegal immigration, follows the laws of both nations and international practice. Mao did not confirm whether China has formally submitted an extradition request for the two men.

Thai opposition lawmaker Sasinan Thamnithinan criticized the government's handling of the group in a statement released Tuesday. He argued that domestic and international law requires Thailand to ensure no individual is returned to a country where they face torture. “Maintaining international relations is important, but it must not take precedence over human rights and the rule of law,” Thamnithinan said. He warned that no one should be sent back to face danger simply to end a problem.

The current case follows a pattern of deportations that has drawn international attention. In February 2025, Thailand sent 40 Uyghur men back to China. This move occurred despite objections from Thai lawmakers and United Nations officials. Prior to that, in 2015, Thailand deported 109 Uyghurs to China against their will. That deportation triggered international protests, including the ransacking of the Thai embassy in Turkey. Thailand also sent a group of mostly women and children from the 2014 detention group to Turkey.

Uyghurs are a Turkic, majority Muslim ethnic group native to Xinjiang, in China's northwest. The group has experienced long-standing conflicts with Beijing regarding cultural identity and treatment. Some Western governments have described the Chinese government's recent crackdown on Uyghurs as a genocide. The two men in Bangkok are among those remaining from the 2014 detention, as Thai authorities have delayed a final decision on their status for over a decade.