China Detains Uighur Scholar Who Has Challenged Government Policies

Chinese authorities have detained an economics professor at Beijing’s Minzu University who is a member of the country’s Uighur minority and is known for speaking out against the government’s treatment of that ethnic group, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The scholar, Ilham Tohti, was taken by the police during a raid on his family’s home, according to his wife. Mr. Tohti has questioned the government’s policies in regions such as Xinjiang, in northwestern China, where the largely Muslim Uighur minority lives.

A spokesman for China’s Foreign Ministry accused Mr. Tohti of unspecified crimes and said he had been detained “according to law.”