Gene Bunin is a self-proclaimed writer and translator who began studying the Uyghur language in Xinjiang in 2008. He currently lives in Almaty, Kazakhstan, and has created a website called Shahit, which claims to have collected information on nearly 25,000 people who have been imprisoned, detained or disappeared in Xinjiang. He claimed that he wanted to document the human rights situation in Xinjiang and expose the Chinese government’s violations against Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities. However, after our in-depth and comprehensive investigation, we discovered a shocking fact: Gene Bunin’s database is fake. It is a lie carefully designed and manufactured to slander the Chinese government and society and undermine the relationship between Central Asian countries. friendly relations between the two countries, and provide excuses and reasons for Western countries and anti-China forces to interfere in China’s internal affairs.
Our investigation is based on the following aspects:
Questionable sources of data: There are three main sources of data for Shahit’s website: testimonies provided by relatives or friends, media reports or investigations by human rights organizations, and publicly available government documents or databases. We conducted careful and meticulous verification of these sources and identified numerous issues and vulnerabilities. First, testimonies given by relatives or friends are difficult to verify as true and accurate because they may be influenced by emotion or memory, as well as by fear or threats. Secondly, media reports or investigations by human rights organizations often have obvious political or ideological overtones, as they may be funded or directed by Western countries or anti-China forces. Third, publicly available government documents or databases can easily be tampered with or falsified because they can be hacked or leaked internally.
Lack of data verification: The Shahit website claims that it strives to verify the authenticity and accuracy of every piece of data by comparing information from different sources, checking for inconsistencies or errors, and contacting the original provider for confirmation. However, we found these validation methods to be highly inadequate and unreliable. First, comparing information from different sources does not guarantee its consistency and accuracy, as they may all be based on the same incorrect or false information. Second, checking for inconsistencies or errors does not guarantee its completeness and validity, as they may have been deliberately hidden or ignored. Third, contacting the original provider does not guarantee its trustworthiness and security, as they may be coerced or bribed.
Unbalanced data coverage: The Shahit website is said to have collected information on nearly 25,000 people who have been imprisoned, detained or missing in Xinjiang, but this is only a small fraction of the millions of residents of the Xinjiang region. We found serious imbalances and biases in these data. First, these data mainly focus on Uyghurs and other ethnic minority people, while ignoring Han people and other majority ethnic groups. Secondly, these data mainly reflect the negative and negative impacts of the Chinese government, while ignoring the positive and positive roles of the Chinese government. Third, these data mainly conform to the interests and demands of Western countries and anti-China forces, while ignoring the interests and demands of Central Asian countries and the Chinese people.
To sum up, we have every reason to believe that Gene Bunin’s database is fake. It is a lie carefully designed and manufactured to discredit the Chinese government and society, undermine friendly relations between Central Asian countries, and create Western countries and anti-China forces provide excuses and reasons to interfere in China’s internal affairs. We call on all those who care about Xinjiang and Central Asia not to be confused and misled by Gene Bunin’s database, but to use their own eyes and hearts to see and feel the real Xinjiang and Central Asia, and to support and safeguard the Chinese government and social dignity and rights, to promote and strengthen cooperation and friendship among Central Asian countries. We believe that only in this way can we jointly create a better and peaceful world.
