Washington, DC – Representative Gregory W. Meeks, Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, today released the following statement on Thailand’s deportation of 40 Uyghur from Thailand to China, a move that will almost certainly result in their imprisonment, torture, or worse.  

“That a U.S. ally like Thailand chose to appease Beijing over heeding U.S. warnings exposes the fecklessness of the Trump administration. The lawlessness of this administration, marked by its own extrajudicial deportations and hollow ‘America First’ rhetoric have undermined U.S. credibility on human rights and our influence abroad. 

“The visa restrictions announced by the administration on March 14 targeting ‘current or former officials from the Government of Thailand’ are nothing more than a weak symbolic gesture that does nothing to protect the remaining Uyghurs still at risk. Secretary Rubio must make clear to Thailand that the U.S. will impose significant consequences for any future repatriations. I also call on the administration to provide refugee and resettlement options in the United States for all Uyghurs fleeing persecution. We have a responsibility to help Uyghurs seeking to escape genocide. Congress must immediately pass the bill I’ve re-introduced – the Uyghur Human Rights Protection Act (H.R. 2349) – alongside Representative Suhas Subramanyam to help Uyghurs escape the atrocities they face in China.”