Serikjan Bilash, fiery critic of Xinjiang crackdown, spared jail in Kazakhstan but must end anti-China activism
- Activist unexpectedly freed as public and international pressure over his case mounted
- Bilash says he ‘had no choice’ but to take plea deal to avoid spending seven years behind bars
A rights activist in Kazakhstan who faced seven years imprisonment over his outspoken opposition to neighbouring China was unexpectedly freed on Friday as public and international pressure over his case mounted.
Serikjan Bilash, whose activism in defence of Muslim and Turkic minorities in Xinjiang earned him global media attention, said he struck a plea bargain with the court that allowed him freedom but will end his activism.
“I had to end my activism against China. It was that or seven years in jail. I had no choice,” Bilash said at a restaurant where he held a celebratory midnight feast with his family and about 40 supporters.
Bilash agreed to accept guilt over inter-ethnic incitement charges triggered by his call for an “information Jihad” against the Chinese authorities over their policies in Xinjiang earlier this year.
He will also be unable to leave the city of Almaty – Kazakhstan’s largest – for the next three months under the terms of his deal, he said.