Australia criticises Thailand's deportation of Uyghurs to China

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australia "strongly disagrees" with Thailand's decision to transfer 40 Uyghurs to China against their will and has raised concerns about their treatment with the Chinese government, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said on Friday.

Rights groups accuse Beijing of widespread abuses of Uyghurs, a mainly Muslim ethnic minority numbering about 10 million in the far western region of Xinjiang. Beijing denies any abuses.

On Thursday, Thailand confirmed a secretive pre-dawn deportation of 40 Uyghurs that drew condemnation from the United Nations, United States and human rights groups, though China said the repatriations were in line with both nations' laws.

"The Australian government strongly disagrees with the decision of the Thai government to transfer a cohort of 40 Uyghurs to China against their will," Wong said in a statement.

The move came despite urging by United Nations human rights experts not to send back the Uyghurs, whom Thailand had held in detention for a decade after they fled China in 2014.

They ran the risk of torture, ill-treatment and "irreparable harm" if returned, the experts added.

Australia has grave concerns about the human rights situation in Xinjiang and the treatment of the Uyghur and other Muslim minorities in China, Wong said.

"We have repeatedly raised our concerns with the Thai government and have also now raised our expectations about the group’s treatment with the Chinese authorities," she added.

Several thousand Uyghurs have settled in Australia.

(Reporting by Kirsty Needham; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)