HONG KONG (AP) - Hong Kong on Saturday criticized rights group Amnesty International’s accusation {that a} Uyghur scholar disappeared after being interrogated on the airport, and stated that authorities information confirmed that he had not entered or been refused entry to town.

Amnesty International stated Friday that Abuduwaili Abudureheman, who was born in Xinjiang in western China, had traveled to Hong Kong from South Korea to go to a buddy on May 10 however has since gone lacking after he texted the buddy about being interrogated after his arrival. He spent the final seven years finding out in Seoul, finishing a Ph.D. in sports and leisure in 2022, based on the group.

In an announcement, the federal government strongly condemned Amnesty’s “groundless and unfounded remarks” as an try and smear it.

“In fact, the records of the HKSAR Government show that the person has not entered or been refused entry by Hong Kong,” the assertion learn, referring to the official title of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. “The organization deliberately attacked the HKSAR Government and slandered the human rights situation in Hong Kong without checking the fact.”

The authorities requested an apology from the group.

“While Abuduwaili remains missing, we will remain concerned for his safety. His friend who reached out to Amnesty International has still not been able to make contact with him after he sent a message saying he was being questioned by Chinese police at the time of his expected arrival in Hong Kong,” Amnesty replied to The Associated Press in response for searching for remark.

The United Nations and human rights teams accuse China of detaining 1,000,000 or extra Uyghurs and members of different predominantly Muslim teams in camps the place many have stated they had been tortured, sexually assaulted and compelled to desert their language and faith.

China denies the accusations, that are based mostly on interviews with survivors, images and satellite tv for pc pictures of the Xinjiang area the place many Uyghurs reside.

Uyghur activists overseas criticized Hong Kong’s denial of its function within the scholar’s whereabouts.

“If he had flown to Hong Kong from South Korea, there would be records of him boarding the plane,” stated Nyrola Elima, an unbiased Uyghur researcher based mostly in Sweden.

“Regardless of the Hong Kong government’s efforts to deny or conceal the atrocities committed by the Beijing and Xinjiang governments against Uyghurs, it remains a fact that a Uyghur Ph.D. student vanished at the Hong Kong airport,” she stated.

Tahir Imin, a Washington, D.C.-based Uyghur educational and founding father of the Uyghur Times, stated that the assertion from Hong Kong authorities was a “blatant lie.”

“If it is true that he did not enter Hong Kong, he would have let his closest friends know his whereabouts for the last two weeks,” he stated.

“The statement from Hong Kong authorities is a blatant lie and attempt to avoid international criticism, to cover its possible complicity in the Chinese Communist Party’s hunting down Uyghurs globally,” he stated.

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Associated Press author Kanis Leung contributed to this report.

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