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Outlook: Writing poems, and waiting to be arrested

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Tahir Hamut Izgil (photo by Aséna Izgil).jpg

03/10/2023 GMT

Writing poems, and waiting to be arrested

BBC World Service - Outlook, Writing poems, and waiting to be arrested

Tahir Izgil is a Uyghur poet who lived under Chinese state surveillance

Tahir Izgil is a Uyghur poet from Western China. He lived for years under state surveillance.

Tahir Izgil is one of the most highly respected living Uyghur poets. Tahir was born near Kashgar, in Xinjiang province, and from an early age he was immersed in the poetry of his culture. When the Chinese state clamped down on the Uyghur community, he lived under constant threat of arrest, and says he couldn’t even perform his poems. So he decided to try and escape his homeland. 

Tahir has a memoir out about his experiences called Waiting to Be Arrested at Night, translated by Joshua Freeman.

Presenter: Mobeen Azhar

Get in touch: outlook@bbc.com or WhatsApp +44 330 678 2707

(Photo: Tahir Hamut Izgil Credit: Aséna Izgil)

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