The account of the Kazakh human rights group was blocked after 9 January. As it gets ready to enter the Chinese market, Facebook seems to be censoring what might upset Beijing. The human rights group has more than 30,000 videos of Kazakhs speaking about their missing relatives.
Almaty (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Facebook has removed the account of a Kazakh human rights group that exposed China’s repression against Kazakhs and Uyghurs in its forced labour camp in Xinjiang, this according to the group’s founder Serikzhan Bilash.
For years, the Atajurt Kazakh Human Rights group has provided information about the situation of Kazakhs in China, including interviews, videos, and press releases.
He says that Facebook blocked the group's account on Monday. In fact, its last post is dated 9 January, last Saturday. On average, one or two news items were posted every day.
Bilash said the group's account was blocked after they posted five videos and some articles. He asked the social networking service for explanations, but none have been given.
According to several observers, Facebook is about to enter the Chinese market. In order to be accepted by Chinese authorities, it is censoring information about forced labour camps in Xinjiang.
Although the United Nations have slammed the camps, the Chinese government insists that they are only educational facilities to train Uyghurs and upgrade their professional skills.
In recent years, Bilash's group has collected eyewitness accounts about Chinese concentration camps in Xinjiang, which are said to be holding up to a million Uighurs and members of other Muslim minorities.
Atajurt Kazakh Human Rights’ archive is impressive: over 30,000 videos of Kazakhs speaking about missing relatives, with content translated into English, German, Turkish, French, Russian, Chinese, and Arabic.