COMMENT | Malaysia, help me bring back my father
COMMENT | My doorbell rang at 3am on April 29, 2017. It was my brother. Even now, I can still remember how his face was full of fear and confusion. My brother and I had been eagerly expecting our parents’ arrival in the US later that day.
But instead, we found out that our 72-year-old father, Mamat Abdullah (above), had been detained by the Chinese government.
That was the beginning of the darkest time of our lives.
My father is a former chief of the Bureau of Forestry in our homeland, the Uyghur Region of China (a.k.a Xinjiang). At the time of his arrest, he had worked for the Chinese government for more than 40 years.
In that time, his leadership and integrity allowed him to make numerous contributions to our society and our environment. He’d helped to save wild animals like the Przewalski’s mustang from extinction and reduce rapid deforestation by preventing illegal logging.
He was a model citizen, but he suddenly became ...
COMMENT | My doorbell rang at 3am on April 29, 2017. It was my brother. Even now, I can still remember how his face was full of fear and confusion. My brother and I had been eagerly expecting our parents’ arrival in the US later that day.
But instead, we found out that our 72-year-old father, Mamat Abdullah (image in the camcorder I'm holding above), had been detained by the Chinese government.
That was the beginning of the darkest time of our lives.
My father is a former chief of the Bureau of Forestry in our homeland, the Uyghur Region of China (a.k.a Xinjiang). At the time of his arrest, he had worked for the Chinese government for more than 40 years.
In that time, his leadership and integrity allowed him to make numerous contributions to our society and our environment. He’d helped to save wild animals like the Przewalski’s mustang from extinction and reduce rapid deforestation by preventing illegal logging.
He was a model citizen, but he suddenly became a “criminal” in 2017 at the same time the Chinese government began taking millions of Uyghurs away to concentration camps and prisons.
Uyghurs are being mistreated and their property and lifelong earnings confiscated, leaving their families without any support. My brother’s land, which he has owned since the ’90s, was confiscated for no reason.
The government has also been locking up multiple family members at the same time on the same accusations - and almost never with any evidence of the so-called “crimes.” My uncle Hekim Hader, who was a judge in the city of Korla, was also arrested simply because he is related to my father.
China’s government says that Uyghurs are "terrorists" who must be stopped, but that could not be further from the truth. The government is locking up people like my father and uncle away for the “crime” of being Uyghur.
Adding insult to their injury, my father is an Uyghur intellectual who dared to be successful and well-respected.
My father has several major health issues including diabetes and high blood pressure. He had also had cancer, but this had been in remission for a decade. It is unbearable to think that he is now in life-threatening danger as the threat of the coronavirus continues to spread in jails in the Uyghur region.
The heartbreak this trauma has caused my family has been immeasurable. No one can prepare you for these feelings and there are many days I don’t know what I should do.
I am the mother of three children - a newborn and two toddlers. Each day my father remains imprisoned, I find myself struggling to fulfil my duties as a loving and caring mother.
Every day has instead become a challenge with sleepless nights, panic attacks, and the utter feeling of helplessness. Sometimes I wonder whether I’ll ever feel happy again.
Louder voice
On top of all of that, it grieves me to think of my mother in her house alone. After my father’s and her savings were confiscated by the Chinese government, she has been left with nothing.
My parents wanted a peaceful life after their retirement. They had picked up again their former hobbies and simply enjoyed one another’s company. My mother loved to sing songs while my father played the accordion and a traditional musical instrument called the dutar.
My father had also begun painting again after 40 years. As my wedding gift and to mark the birth of my first child, he gave me two beautiful paintings that he had painted himself - as well as planting a Japanese maple tree in front of my house as a symbol of a newborn baby.
These beautiful memories have kept me hopeful. I continue to believe that there will be more meaningful moments to look forward to but I desperately need help to make those moments a reality.
In late 2020, the Malaysian government reaffirmed its commitment not to deport Uyghurs. To send an Uyghur back to our homeland would be like sending them to prison - they will almost certainly disappear into a camp where they will face brainwashing, starvation, torture, or even death. My father and millions of others have faced this horrible fate.
The Malaysian government’s stand is an excellent first step towards protecting Uyghurs like my father but it is not enough. I need the Malaysian government, a leader in the Muslim world, to raise its voice for my father and our people. Uyghurs like myself need Malaysia to show vocal support for our human rights.
Only then, with the support of people around the world, can I raise my voice louder to let the world know about China’s atrocity crimes.
Only then can I find my father and have him released from his wrongful imprisonment. And only then will my father be able to come home safely, so that I can hear my children call him "Grandpa" once again.
(To help me share my father’s case, please follow me on Twitter and Facebook @Subimamat and share my posts with #FreeMamatAbdullah.)
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.
Are you sure you want to delete this comment?
This action cannot be undone.