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| China unexpectedly frees two brothers of U.S. reporter after long detention | China unexpectedly frees two brothers of U.S. reporter after long detention |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| BEIJING – China has unexpectedly freed two brothers of an Washington-based reporter for Radio Free Asia (RFA), after they were held in detention for 16 months, in a case that attracted significant attention from the U.S. government and Congress. | BEIJING – China has unexpectedly freed two brothers of an Washington-based reporter for Radio Free Asia (RFA), after they were held in detention for 16 months, in a case that attracted significant attention from the U.S. government and Congress. |
| Three brothers of ethnic Uighur journalist Shohret Hoshur were detained in 2014, in what was widely seen as an attempt by the Chinese government to intimidate one of the few sources of independent reporting into events in its troubled western region of Xinjiang. Now, two have been freed. | Three brothers of ethnic Uighur journalist Shohret Hoshur were detained in 2014, in what was widely seen as an attempt by the Chinese government to intimidate one of the few sources of independent reporting into events in its troubled western region of Xinjiang. Now, two have been freed. |
| Hoshur left China in 1994, after he ran into trouble with the authorities for his reporting. He has since become a U.S. citizen and a mainstay of RFA’s coverage of Xinjiang. | Hoshur left China in 1994, after he ran into trouble with the authorities for his reporting. He has since become a U.S. citizen and a mainstay of RFA’s coverage of Xinjiang. |
| One of his brothers, Tudaxun, was sentenced to five years in jail at a mass trial in June 2014 for endangering state security. | One of his brothers, Tudaxun, was sentenced to five years in jail at a mass trial in June 2014 for endangering state security. |
| Rights groups, members of Congress and RFA have expressed the belief that his punishment was linked to Shohret Hoshur’s reporting, which often highlights human rights abuses in Xinjiang: that is partly because that reporting was a focus of Tudaxun’s interrogators. | Rights groups, members of Congress and RFA have expressed the belief that his punishment was linked to Shohret Hoshur’s reporting, which often highlights human rights abuses in Xinjiang: that is partly because that reporting was a focus of Tudaxun’s interrogators. |
| [Read: China uses long-range intimidation of U.S. reporter to suppress Xinjiang coverage] | [Read: China uses long-range intimidation of U.S. reporter to suppress Xinjiang coverage] |
| The other two brothers, Shawket and Rexim, were then detained in August 2014, shortly after holding a telephone conversation with Shohret Hoshur, in which they complained about the injustice of their brother’s arrest. | The other two brothers, Shawket and Rexim, were then detained in August 2014, shortly after holding a telephone conversation with Shohret Hoshur, in which they complained about the injustice of their brother’s arrest. |
| They were charged with “leaking state secrets” and “endangering state security,” and tried separately in August, although no verdict was issued. | They were charged with “leaking state secrets” and “endangering state security,” and tried separately in August, although no verdict was issued. |
| With little warning, the pair were released to their families in the town of Horgos on Wednesday, according to RFA spokesman Rohit Mahajan. There were no details of the terms of their release, he said, adding that both men are understood to have lost weight during their detention. | With little warning, the pair were released to their families in the town of Horgos on Wednesday, according to RFA spokesman Rohit Mahajan. There were no details of the terms of their release, he said, adding that both men are understood to have lost weight during their detention. |
| Hoshur insists his brothers are all upstanding members of the community, farmers and merchants with little or no interest in politics. He says relatives have been harassed by Chinese officials in Xinjiang, and some have even phoned him in the past urging him to leave his job at RFA. | Hoshur insists his brothers are all upstanding members of the community, farmers and merchants with little or no interest in politics. He says relatives have been harassed by Chinese officials in Xinjiang, and some have even phoned him in the past urging him to leave his job at RFA. |
| The U.S. government has repeatedly urged China to release all of Hoshur’s brothers. He has met several state department officials, and was among a group of dissidents and their relatives who met Secretary of State John F. Kerry ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to the United States in September. | The U.S. government has repeatedly urged China to release all of Hoshur’s brothers. He has met several state department officials, and was among a group of dissidents and their relatives who met Secretary of State John F. Kerry ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to the United States in September. |
| That month, he also testified before the Congressional-Executive Commission on China. | That month, he also testified before the Congressional-Executive Commission on China. |
| Hoshur went on Facebook “to share the great news that my older and youngest brother have been released in the early morning of December 30 from a detention center in Urumqi. He thanked the State Department, Virginia Senator Mark Warner, the Committee to Protect Journalists, the U.S. Government’s Broadcasting Board of Governors and “fellow journalists” who have continuously followed the case. “I also want to thank my colleagues at RFA for their support, and my friends who stood by me during some very difficult times.” | Hoshur went on Facebook “to share the great news that my older and youngest brother have been released in the early morning of December 30 from a detention center in Urumqi. He thanked the State Department, Virginia Senator Mark Warner, the Committee to Protect Journalists, the U.S. Government’s Broadcasting Board of Governors and “fellow journalists” who have continuously followed the case. “I also want to thank my colleagues at RFA for their support, and my friends who stood by me during some very difficult times.” |
| Mahajan called the release welcome news, but said RFA remained concerned about other reporters at the organization with families in China. “They could easily find themselves facing the same situation,” he said. “Shohret has had to work under extraordinary pressure for the duration of this process, which unfolded over almost a year and a half. All of us at RFA have admired his professionalism and bravery throughout." | Mahajan called the release welcome news, but said RFA remained concerned about other reporters at the organization with families in China. “They could easily find themselves facing the same situation,” he said. “Shohret has had to work under extraordinary pressure for the duration of this process, which unfolded over almost a year and a half. All of us at RFA have admired his professionalism and bravery throughout." |
| Shortly after Hoshur broke the news of his three brothers' arrest in January, Tudaxun was moved to a detention center nearer his family in Horgos, suggesting international attention was having an impact. | |
| Human rights groups say China represses the rights, culture and freedom of worship for Xinjiang’s Uighur Muslims. The region has been home to long-running separatist unrest, and violence has dramatically increased in the past two years. | Human rights groups say China represses the rights, culture and freedom of worship for Xinjiang’s Uighur Muslims. The region has been home to long-running separatist unrest, and violence has dramatically increased in the past two years. |
| China’s government says the violent separatists are motivated by Islamist extremism, but it has made independent reporting from Xinjiang almost impossible by harassing foreign journalists who visit the province and threatening Uighurs who talk to reporters. | China’s government says the violent separatists are motivated by Islamist extremism, but it has made independent reporting from Xinjiang almost impossible by harassing foreign journalists who visit the province and threatening Uighurs who talk to reporters. |
| RFA was set up by Congress in 1994 to broadcast news that would otherwise not be reported in Asian countries where governments do not allow a free press. It continues to be funded by an annual grant from the U.S. government’s Broadcasting Board of Governors. Covering China, RFA has services in Mandarin, Cantonese, Uighur and Tibetan. | RFA was set up by Congress in 1994 to broadcast news that would otherwise not be reported in Asian countries where governments do not allow a free press. It continues to be funded by an annual grant from the U.S. government’s Broadcasting Board of Governors. Covering China, RFA has services in Mandarin, Cantonese, Uighur and Tibetan. |
| The Post's View: China exports repression beyond its borders | The Post's View: China exports repression beyond its borders |