Turkish protesters Wednesday attacked the Thai consulate in Istanbul in protest over the Thai government sending Uyghur people back to China, which was seen by observers as the outcome of Turkey government indulging extremists to reach its political purpose amid forming a coalition government.
A group of protesters broke into the building of the Thai Consulate-General in Istanbul late Wednesday, smashed windows and lowered the Thai flag before being dispersed by police, the Bangkok Post reported Thursday.
The National News Bureau of Thailand (NNT) said on Thursday that the breakout of the attack was because protesters were outraged by the Thai government's decision to deport Uyghur people back to China. The consulate was temporarily closed on Thursday, and Thai citizens in Turkey have been encouraged to exercise more caution for their own safety.
Li Weijian, an expert with the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies, said that the Turkish authorities, who did not intervene or control the protests, attempted to seek more public support for the coalition government.
"Turkey's government has turned more and more unreasonable in indulging a series of protests targeting China," Li said.
In response to Thai media's reports that the Thai government has sent 100 Uyghurs back to China on Wednesday, China's foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying did not confirm whether the Uyghur people have been sent back during Thursday's briefing, but said that China is dedicated to strengthening cooperation with international communities on cracking down on illegal immigrants. "The religious atmosphere in Turkey has became stronger following the election of the new president, who is seeking great power status for the country in the Muslim dominated Middle East," said Sun Lizhou, a Xinjiang-born scholar from the South West University of Political Science and Law.
Historically, the Turkish people with Pan-Turkism sentiment believed that they should observe the duty for Uyghur people in Xinjiang and such sentiment has grown stronger in the intense religious atmosphere, Sun said.
The vandalism to the Thai consulate was the latest in a series of attacks in Istanbul. A Chinese-owned restaurant and a Turkish-owned Chinese restaurant in Istanbul were attacked last week. The reason of the attacks came amid Turkey's concerns over false reports about China's ban on fasting in Xinjiang during Ramadan. The Chinese government has denied the accusations. "The anti-China sentiment in Turkey might intensify if Turkey's government does not take control, and if it continues, Turkey will receive international criticism and its relationship with China will be greatly affected," Li said.
