Ayishe Yasin, a Uyghur activist passed away in April 15th 2024 in Istanbul.She had been a voice of millions of voiceless people. She made awareness through her protests, her courage and ability to organise people.
She died in such a young age because of illness actually treatable. Due to she was not a Turkish citizen, she could not benefit national medical insurance, at the hospital she could not afford the medical expenses. She could not see the doctor on time, her illness would not be treated because of her condition, her low income.
She died at the hospital in her 53 years, if she had medical insurance from the state. She would be with us, she would be telling us stories of Uyghur history like she did in 2014.
She worked in Turkiye for 10 years, however her citizenship application hasn’t been approved in 5 years. A few months ago another Uyghur poet lost his life in Istanbul for similar reasons. He also could not get his citizenship for 9 years, he passed away when his citizenship application was still under the process.
Ayishe Yasin worked in China for 20 years, she left China for living as Uyghur, for fighting for freedom. Even she worked in China, she paid her pension for 20 years but she couldn’t get her pension because of living in Turkey.
There are thousands of Uyghurs worked in China more than 30 years, they left Chinese state to live as a human being, but they were rejected to get their pensions from China because of living in diaspora, especially living in a hostile state in Chinese eyes like Turkey.
Unfortunately the Uyghurs who got rejected by Chinese government, also rejected by Turkish government as well, they could not get their citizenship from Turkiye for years.
While they don’t have citizenship they could not hold medical insurance from the state, then medical expenses are bothering them, It’s the reality of thousands of Uyghurs.
Türkiye haven’t been issued citizenship for thousands of Uyghurs even they had been working there for years with working permits, with legal residency.
Ayishe Yasin is gone, she will never return. I want to pass her words at the end: China rejected us as a citizen, but Türkiye betrayed us as our second homeland when we are in desperate times.
