A 49-year Uyghur Muslim woman in China was reportedly sentenced to 17 years in jail for teaching religious verses to her sons and a neighbour. Her activities of Quranic verses were termed as ‘illegal underground religious activities’ by the Chinese authorities.
The woman named Seylihan Rozi is a resident of Saybagh village in Kashgar’s Konasheher county and will be sent to Xinjiang prison. As per reports, Seylihan Rozi was teaching 10 Quranic verses that Muslims recite while offering namaz. This was considered teaching “illegal religious education” and “illegal underground religious activity” by the authorities.
Rozi’s two sons were also sentenced to 7 and 10 years, respectively, in prison for receiving “illegal religious education” from their mother. Moreover, the neighbour named Yakub Hidayatullah who attended her lessons has also been sentenced to 9 years in prison.
China’s persecution of Uyghurs
For years, Chinese authorities have imposed harsh restrictions on Uyghur Muslims in the north-western region of Xinjiang. More than a million Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities, who are primarily Muslim, have reportedly been interned in camps, according to the UN.
The country is accused of trying to eliminate the Uyghur Muslim culture and forcing the Uyghur people to assimilate in the Han Chinese culture. It has also destroyed mosques and Islamic shrines over years. From banning fasting during Ramzan to learning or teaching religious verses, China has been using all kinds of tactics to eliminate Uyghur Islamic culture.
