Ex-Guantanamo, Uighur, refugees, looking, Australia

The arrival in Palau of six Uighurs, originally from the Xinjiang region in the far west of China, but locked up in Guantanamo Bay for the past eight years, has occurred at the same time as news reports that Chinese government police “have launched a crackdown on terror” aimed at Uighurs. “Their ‘Strike Hard’ campaign is to run from November through the end of the year and will cover all of the remote Xinjiang region.”

While it is undoubtedly just a coincidence that these two events have occurred around the same time, it is a reminder that the Uighurs now in Palau (and others previously released from Guantanamo Bay to live in Albania and Bermuda) are in effect refugees. They certainly can never expect to be able to safely return to China.

The ABC’s Radio Australia has reported that the Uighurs' resettlement in Palau may only be temporary “until they can find a permanent home, preferably a country with an established Uighur community.” Australia is one such country and “both the lawyers representing the former detainees, and the President of Palau, want Australia to consider taking the men.” Radio Australia also interviewed me for their story.  

There’s no doubt the men could safely settle in Australia, and it makes sense for refugees to be able to settle somewhere where others from the same ethnic background also live. This can assist them in resettling more effectively, which in turn assists their ability to integrate better into the wider community. The Uighurs obviously do not present a danger or they would not have been released, and after being locked up for eight years without charge, they certainly deserve consideration.

But there is no doubt it would severely aggravate the Chinese government if the six men were allowed to resettle in Australia. The loud complaints from the Chinese government when exiled Uighur leader Rebiya Kadeer was allowed to briefly visit Australia a few months ago to attend a film screening about her life would pale in comparison compared to the outrage that would be expressed if any Uighurs released from Guantanamo Bay were allowed to settle here.

It is not unreasonable for the Australian government to take diplomatic relations into consideration. While they they shouldn’t let themselves be dictated to by other countries about who can visit or settle here, they do have to consider how much harm it might cause to the diplomatic relationship.