Additional Name(s): Gulshen Abbas, گۈلشەن ئابباس, 古丽先·阿巴斯

Gender: Female

Perpetrator: China

Ethnic Group: Uyghur

Religion or Belief: Unspecified

Health Concerns: High blood pressure, migraines, back problems, osteoporosis

Reports of Torture: No

Reports of Medical Neglect: No

Sentence: 20 Years' Imprisonment

Date of Detainment: September/11/2018

Date of Sentencing: March//2019

Current Status: Not Released

Religious Leader: No

Most Recent Type of Abuse: Imprisonment

Reason for Persecution: Ethnoreligious Identity

Nature of Charges: Illegal Assembly Terrorism

Gulshan Abbas

Extra Bio Info:

Gulshan Abbas is imprisoned in relation to her ethnoreligious identity. 

On September 11, 2018, authorities in Urumqi municipality, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) forcibly disappeared Dr. Abbas, a retired medical doctor. Her detention may have been made in retaliation for her sister, Rushan's public criticism of the treatment of Uyghurs by the Chinese government at an event at a U.S. think-tank less than one week earlier.

In March 2019, Abbas was reportedly sentenced to 20 years in prison. In December 2020, it was learned that Abbas had been convicted of "participating in a terrorist organization," "aiding terrorist activities," and "gathering a crowd to disrupt social order."

Abbas reportedly suffers from high blood pressure, severe back pain that often leads to immobilization, osteoporosis, and recurring migraines migraines.

Rep. Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) advocates for Abbas as part of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission's Defending Freedoms Project.

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