Ghappar, a Uyghur traditional healer from Kashgar, was taken away in February 2017. During his trial in June 2017 Ghappar looked really skinny and both his hands and feet were chained. He was sentenced to seven years in prison, but his family do not know the official charge. According to his father interviewed by Amnesty International and based in Turkey, Ghappar is a very religious man who knows the Qur’an by heart, this is the assumed reason for his detention.
Despite attempts to reach out to the Chinese authorities in Turkey, Ghappar’s father has not been provided with any official documents about the status of his son. Based on trusted sources in Xinjiang, before being transferred to a prison in Shiho (Wusu), Ghappar spent time in an internment camp where he fell sick. Allegedly, the authorities said that if the family could pay them, he would be released.