THE 500 MOST INFLUENTIAL MUSLIMS - CESD

Issues of the DayUighur Chinese RelationsASIA/CHINAkadeer, rebiyaKadeer is the de facto leader of the movement for social justice for the 15-million-strong Uighurethnic-population of China. She was formerly a successful businesswoman and philanthropist inChina but was imprisoned in 2000 for leaking state secrets and now lives in exile in the UnitedStates. Before her arrest, Kadeer was running the 1,000 Families Mothers’ Project, which helpedUighur women start businesses. She now presides over both the World Uighur Congress and theUighur American Association. She is well-known for her work in Europe and North Americapublicizing the plight of the Uighur ethnic group, and is partially responsible for raising the issue’sstatus both in China and abroad. The Chinese government sees Kadeer as an agitator. She wasnominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006.174