Dr. Erkin Siddiq
is the founder of the Uyghur Academy and previously served as an advisor to the World Uyghur Congress. He is currently president of the Uyghur Projects Foundation. After earning his bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from Xinjiang University, he worked as a teacher and research assistant in China and Japan until 1988. In May 1990, Dr. Sidick earned his master's degree in physics from California State University, Northridge, and in 1995, his doctorate in electrical engineering with a focus on nonlinear optics from the University of California, Davis. After spending a year and a half as a postdoctoral researcher at UC Davis and Sandia National Laboratories (California) researching laser traps and nonlinear optical devices, he worked at three different companies in Silicon Valley, California, in research and development and in management positions in various fields of optics, particularly passive optical components. In January 2004, he joined NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory as a senior optical engineer, where he works on integrated modeling and measurement techniques for space telescopes designed to directly detect habitable exoplanets. He is co-author of over 120 publications, including journal articles, book chapters, and conference presentations, and holds three patents.
Michael Polak
Barrister at Church Court Chambers UK and Director of Justice Abroad
Michael Polak is a lawyer who represents high-profile clients and important cases before international courts, United Nations bodies, in human rights proceedings, in proceedings worldwide, and before the courts of England and Wales. Mr. Polak's work encompasses international law, international crime, human rights, fraud, private litigation, strategic litigation, and serious criminal offenses. His work often has an international dimension, and he was awarded the prestigious Outstanding Young Lawyer Award by the International Bar Association in 2021. He is also the director of Justice Abroad, an organization that helps people with legal problems around the world. In addition, he is a director of Lawyers for Uyghur Rights, an organization that provides legal expertise to Uyghur organizations. Michael is part of the legal team that has brought a universal jurisdiction case on behalf of the World Uyghur Congress against Chinese leaders for their complicity in the genocide of the Uyghurs.
Maira Aisaeva
is a Uyghur activist and community leader based in London who advocates for the rights and welfare of the Uyghur people in the UK and beyond. She is currently the president of the Uyghur community in the UK. Since 2021, she has been a member of the World Uyghur Congress and actively fights for the human rights of the Uyghur people.
Maira currently heads a charity that supports the Uyghur community in the UK, where she plays a central role in community mobilization, cultural preservation, and social welfare. With her expertise in social benefits and housing entitlements, she has helped countless individuals and families navigate complex systems to obtain vital support. A graduate of the Kyrgyz State Judicial Academy, Maira brings legal and socio-political knowledge to her work. Since 2014, she has also worked as an interpreter for local authorities in London, bridging linguistic and cultural differences between different communities.
With passion, perseverance, and great dedication, Maira continues to lead initiatives that empower Uyghurs in the diaspora, while also advocating for justice and recognition on a global level.
Professor Thomas G. Schulze
studied medicine in Erlangen (Bavaria), Manama (Bahrain), Barcelona (Catalonia), and Chapel Hill and Winston-Salem (both North Carolina). He trained as a psychiatrist and held various positions in Germany (Bonn, Mannheim,
Göttingen, Munich) and the USA (Chicago, IL; Bethesda, MD; Baltimore, MD; Syracuse, NY). He is a German and US citizen. Since 2014, he has been Chairman and Director of the Institute for Psychiatric Phenomics and Genomics (www.ippg.eu) at Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich (IPPG). He is a research fellow at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) in Bethesda, MD, and an adjunct professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD. In 2019, he also joined the faculty of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA, where he holds a position as clinical professor.
He is licensed to practice medicine in the European Union and the State of New York. In addition to national German awards, he received the Robins-Guze Award from the American Psychopathological Association (APPA) in 2006, the Theodore Reich Award from the International Society of Psychiatric Genetics (ISPG) in 2006, and the Colvin Award from the Brain & Behavioral Research Foundation (BBRF). He is a Fellow of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP), the APPA.
Prof. i.R. Dr. med. Thomas Wenzel
from Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, formerly Medical University of Vienna, former Secretary General of the International Academy of Law and Mental Health, and Medical Director of the IRCT, is currently Chair of the Scientific Section of the World Psychiatric Association (WPA) on psychological aspects of persecution and torture.
He is active in the field of medical ethics and human rights and has published more than 100 works, including several books. He has also taught in numerous countries and collaborated on projects with the WPA, UNICEF, the Uyghur Center for Democracy and Human Rights, and the World Uyghur Congress.
Asiye Abdulahad
is a Dutch-Uyghur commentator, human rights activist, and refugee aid worker.
She began her professional career at an official magazine in China. After moving abroad, she began publishing commentary on Uyghur issues and Chinese politics under the pseudonym “Asiye Uyghur” and later became a political commentator for Radio Free Asia (RFA).
Asiye has been living in the Netherlands since 2010, where she currently works in refugee aid and as a guest author for the Uyghur Human Rights Project (UHRP). She also continues to publish political commentary in Chinese.
In 2019, Asiye became a key whistleblower in the “China Cables” case. She obtained internal documents about the operation of re-education camps in East Turkestan and the mass internment of Uyghurs, which she handed over to international scientists and media, triggering worldwide attention. During this time, she and her family were subjected to threats and were placed under special protection by the Dutch authorities.
In 2021, Asiye wrote a research report compiling so-called “red documents” issued by the Chinese government since 1949. The report describes official guidelines for the persecution of Uyghurs, the operation of re-education camps, and information about the officials involved, thus providing an important basis for international human rights research.
Through her research, publications, and public engagement, Asiye Abdulahad continues to advocate for human rights and raise awareness about the situation of Uyghurs and other oppressed groups.