Feb 22, 2014
Oakville Beaver
By John Bkila
Celebrating a 45th birthday should be a time shared with family and loved ones, but for Huseyin Celil, it will be a day like any other.
Celil, a Canadian citizen who was born in China, is a prisoner of conscience in that country. His birthday is March 1.
He was arrested during a family trip to Uzbekistan in 2006 and deported to China. A native Uighur from northwest China, Celil worked on human rights for his people in the 1990s before he fled the country.
He came to Canada in 2001 as a refugee from Turkey and settled in Burlington with his wife and four young children, ages ranging from six-15 — three of whom were born in Canada.
The Chinese consider Celil, to be a Chinese national and do not recognize his Canadian citizenship, granted in 2005.
They have denied him visits from a Canadian consul since he was arrested and imprisoned in 2006, for what his family and supporters say are trumped up terrorism charges and a means to intimidate others who work on human rights for Uighurs.
“He is still in prison — for many years in solitary confinement with only one meal a day. We are not sure of his situation at present because the Chinese authorities will not release any information about Huseyin,” stated a news release issued by the Oakville Group of Amnesty International.
The local contingent has been organizing birthday card blitzes every March 1 since Celil’s imprisonment in 2007, in an effort to create more public awareness of his case and eventually help bring him back home to Canada.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper has raised the Burlington man’s plight with the Chinese premier, most recently during a visit to China in 2012 for trade talks. According to an online Burlington Post article on Feb. 11, 2012, it was unclear if Chinese officials reacted positively to the diplomatic pressure.
“Let’s try to get this human rights activist back to Canada — to his wife and four sons,” stated the release. “If people would like to help, please send a note to Prime Minister Stephen Harper requesting further diplomatic pressure be exerted on China in support of Huseyin Celil.”
For more information, email amnestyoakville@gmail.com or visit www.amnestyoakville.com.
— with files from the Burlington Post