DPA
Phnom Penh - The Cambodian government has decided to deport 20 Uighur asylum seekers back to China despite concerns from human rights groups about their safety, officials said Saturday. The decision to deport the 22 asylum seekers who came from the far western Xinjiang region and arrived in Cambodia last month came days before the arrival of Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping on an official visit.
"They are not real refugees," Interior Ministry spokesman Khieu Sopheak told the German Press Agency dpa. "They will have to leave Cambodia in no later than one week."
The Chinese Muslims from Xinjiang, the site of violent anti-Chinese protests in July, entered Cambodia last month and were given a "people of concern" status by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) before they were taken into police custody for violating immigration laws.
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