The UN’s refugee agency rebuffed requests from the Thai government to assist 48 Uyghur asylum seekers from China who have been detained in life-threatening conditions in Thailand for more than 10 years, according to internal UNHCR documents seen by The New Humanitarian.

Five of the asylum seekers are serving prison sentences related to a 2020 escape attempt, while the remaining 43 are being held without charge in Bangkok’s Suan Phlu immigration detention centre, subjected to sweltering, foul-smelling, cramped conditions. They are barred from communicating with their families, lawyers, or even other detainees.

Thai authorities have no plans to release the Uyghurs, according to a 2023 report by the country’s National Human Rights Commission.

For years, UNHCR has maintained that the Thai government has prevented the agency from accessing the group to collect the information necessary to grant them refugee status and facilitate their resettlement in a third country.

However, the internal documents, which date back to 2020, reveal that the Thai government began informally petitioning UNHCR almost five years ago to play a more active role in resolving the Uyghurs’ indefinite detention, and that agency staff advised against doing this.

UNHCR has provided life-saving assistance to millions of asylum seekers around the world, but according to a 2023 report by the Uyghur Human Rights Project (UHRP), China’s growing influence over some host countries undermines “any political or humanitarian will to recognise and duly protect Uyghur refugees”. The internal documents suggest that China’s influence also extends to the UN’s refugee agency, rights advocates who reviewed the documents said.

“The documents show that UNHCR has failed to uphold its mandate to protect Uyghur refugees,” said Fortify Rights director John Quinley, after reviewing the documents. “UNHCR leadership does not seem to be proactively trying to find solutions for the Uyghur refugees who are spending years in detention.”