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Consulate-General of China, Istanbul

Coordinates: 41°08′23″N 29°03′10″E / 41.139758°N 29.0526823°E / 41.139758; 29.0526823
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Consulate-General of the People's Republic of China in Istanbul
中华人民共和国驻伊斯坦布尔总领事馆
Map
LocationIstanbul
Coordinates41°08′23″N 29°03′10″E / 41.139758°N 29.0526823°E / 41.139758; 29.0526823
Opening1985
Consul GeneralWei Xiaodong
Websiteistanbul.china-consulate.org Edit this at Wikidata

The Consulate-General of the People's Republic of China in Istanbul (Chinese: 中华人民共和国驻伊斯坦布尔总领事馆; pinyin: Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó zhù Yīsītǎnbù'ěr Zǒnglǐngshìguǎn, Turkish: Çin Halk Cumhuriyeti İstanbul Başkonsolosluğu) is a diplomatic mission representing China located in Istanbul.

Opened in 1985, it serves the city as well as surrounding areas. The consulate has been the site of protests because of the Xinjiang conflict and the Chinese government's treatment of the Uyghurs, with the persecution of Uyghurs in China leading to increased protesting. The Chinese government has also alleged that East Turkestan independence movement extremists bombed the consulate in 1998.

History

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The consulate was initially opened in July or August 1985.[1][2] According to the consulate's website, it had consular jurisdiction in İstanbul, Balıkesir, Bursa, Çanakkale, Edirne, Kırklareli, Kocaeli, Tekirdağ, Yalova, and Manisa provinces as of 2018.[3]

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The consulate, along with the embassy in Ankara, has been the site of several regularly-occurring protests regarding relations between the Chinese government and the Uyghur minority in Xinjiang.[4][5] In 1989, Oral Çalışlar, Halil Berktay, and Hurriyet Karadeniz, then editors of the magazine "United Socialist" (Sosyalist Birlik), were arrested after laying a black wreath there to commemorate a "massacre" in China.[6] Mass protests have been recorded as far back as June 1990, when 1,500 protesters demonstrated there in the aftermath of the Baren Township conflict.[7] After reports of further persecution of the Uyghurs in 2015, the Chinese consulate was one of several sites where protests took place, with "several hundred" people involved.[8] In January 2021, a series of protests by Uyghurs in Turkey to get the Chinese government to acknowledge their missing relatives led to the intervention of the Istanbul government, which got the consulate to accept the protestors' documents.[9] However, the Turkish police also prohibited such gatherings based on security and pandemic restrictions. After moving to the embassy in Ankara in February, demonstrations accelerated in March over the visit of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at both the consulate in Istanbul and the embassy in Ankara.[10][11][12]

The Chinese government alleged that "East Turkestan separatists" bombed the consulate in 1998. Sean Roberts of George Washington University investigated this and a number of other claimed terrorist attacks and concluded that it was the only instance of Uyghur "terrorism" out of the 45 occurrences provided by the government.[13] The Chinese government has also claimed that "East Turkestan terrorists" fired at the embassy and burned the consulate's flag in 1997.[14]

References

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  1. ^ Liang, Liangxing (1989). China's Foreign Relations: A Chronology of Events (1949-1988). Foreign Languages Press. ISBN 978-7-119-00798-4.
  2. ^ Weiker, Walter F. (1987) [1984-1985]. Rabinovich, Itamar; Shaked, Haim (eds.). "Turkey". Middle East Contemporary Survey. IX. Tel Aviv: Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies: 686. ISBN 978-0-8133-7445-1.
  3. ^ "Görev Bölgesi" [Mission Area]. Chinese Consulate Istanbul (in Turkish). 2 March 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2021.
  4. ^ Butler, Daren (8 March 2021). "Looming China extradition deal worries Uighurs in Turkey". Reuters. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  5. ^ "Diplomatic storm in Turkey over China's treatment of Uighur population". euronews. 7 April 2021. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  6. ^ The Pulse: Daily Review of the Turkish Press. Vedat Uras. 1989.
  7. ^ Colakoğlu, Selçuk (4 January 2021). Turkey And China: Political, Economic, And Strategic Aspects Of The Relationship. World Scientific. pp. 38–39. ISBN 978-1-78634-954-5.
  8. ^ "China says tourists attacked in Turkey during anti-China protests". Reuters. 5 July 2015. Retrieved 30 May 2021 – via www.reuters.com.
  9. ^ "Turkey-based Relatives of Uyghur Detainees Pause Protests After Chinese Consulate Accepts Demands". Radio Free Asia. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  10. ^ "Turkey Cracks Down on Uighur Protesters After China Complains". Voice of America. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  11. ^ "Uyghurs in Turkey protest against 'genocide' in China's Xinjiang". Nikkei Asia. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  12. ^ "Uyghurs in Turkey protest Chinese foreign minister's visit". AP. 20 April 2021. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
  13. ^ Tanner, Murray Scot; Bellacqua, James (June 2016). China's Response to Terrorism (PDF). CNA. p. 158. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  14. ^ "Beijing Review". Beijing Review. 2002. p. 18.
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