On 27 February 2025, at 2:14 AM, dozens of Uyghurs who were in immigration detention centers were taken away in six trucks with windows blacked out, and flown to the Xingjiang city of Kashgar. This is the first time since 2015 that Thailand has deported Uyghurs. It demonstrates that Thailand is willing to listen to the demands of China, over the demands of civil society organisations and other countries such as the US or the EU.
On 6 March 2025, Thailand vice foreign minister Russ Jalichandra acknowledged that Bangkok had received offers from other countries to resettle the Uyghurs, reversing the previous government stance that Thailand had received no such offers. He also said that the stated proposals were “unrealistic” and would expose Thailand to retaliation from China that would impact the livelihood of many Thais. Previously, Thai Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Weychayachai said that, despite waiting for more than 10 years, no country made any concrete offers to resettle the 48 Uyghurs.
This event carries risk of arbitrary detention and torture for the 48 deported Uyghurs. In Thailand, it represents a breach of trust between the Thai government, CSOs and various foreign governments.
The fate of eight Uyghurs still believed to be in Thailand is currently unknown.