Death of pro-China US journalist sparks grief and conspiracy theories on Weibo
Xi defends ‘correct’ Xinjiang policies amid growing human rights concerns
In a post that garnered more than 800 likes and almost 400 shares, one netizen described Vltchek, 57, as “the journalist who took off his Western undies” in reference to his anti-American stance, noting he had once said that China was the world‘s “last hope”.“I cherish the memory of this communist fighter, a friend of the Chinese people,” another netizen wrote.
Other commentators speculated, without evidence, that Vltchek had been assassinated for supporting Beijing’s positions on the anti-government protests in Hong Kong and the treatment of the Uygur ethnic minority in Xinjiang.Although Turkish media said police had recorded Vltchek’s death as “suspicious,” the journalist’s wife, Rossie Indira, told the left-wing magazine Counterpunch he had died of complications from diabetes. Indira said Vltchek, a naturalised American who was born in the Soviet Union, had been severely ill for weeks and had refused medical treatment, according to the magazine, which in an op-ed article last week described the journalist as a “revolutionary fighting for the underclass, a lifetime communist and advocate of Chinese globalism.”
When contacted, Indira said she would be unable to comment in time for publication. Efforts to contact Turkish authorities were unsuccessful.
Erkin Öncan, a friend of Vltchek who works for the Russian state-owned news agency Sputnik in Turkey, said it was common for authorities to record deaths as suspicious while they were being investigated. He added that English-language media reports had given a misleading impression of the case.
“This is about Turkish law; ‘suspicious’ is also considered as ’unknown for now,’” Öncan said, describing media reports as “absolutely exaggerating” the circumstance of his death.
“The medical report on Andre‘s death has not yet been published. However, according to the preliminary results, the cause of death is health problems,” he said.
Öncan said Vltchek had been drawn to China due to his self-proclaimed communist and anti-imperialist views.
“Andre also saw China as a powerful socialist country and defended China on all fronts,” he said. “He always exposed the aggressive face of the United States on matters such as Xinjiang, Hong Kong, and the trade war.”
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In an opinion piece published in China Daily in July, Vltchek claimed anti-government protesters in Hong Kong had been “paid well” to “destroy China”, echoing Beijing’s claims that unrest in the city was the result of paid provocateurs.
The journalist did not offer any evidence for his claims. Hong Kong police have accused activists of paying some young people to attend protests through the fundraising platform Spark Alliance HK, allegations which have been denied by figures close to the group and for which no charges have been brought.
“It is all extremely bad theatre,” Vltchek wrote. “But a deadly, effective one. And actors are paid well, royally. Therefore, if not stopped, they will make sure not to abandon their roles.”
Last year, Vltchek wrote a China Daily op-ed piece repeating Beijing’s claims that re-education camps for Uygurs in Xinjiang were in fact “vocational training centres”, where he said people were taught “skills and the Chinese language so they can lead a gainful life and avoid falling prey to ‘terrorist and religious extremist’ ideologies”.
United Nations experts believe more than one million Uygur and other ethnic minority Muslims in the far western region have been detained in the camps without charges or trial, in what activists say amount to crimes against humanity and cultural genocide.
Angelo Giuliano, a financial consultant and entrepreneur in Hong Kong who corresponded with Vltchek and is regularly quoted in Chinese state media, described the journalist’s death as a “big loss for real, investigative journalism and for pacifists, anti-imperialism, multipolar world supporters”.
Additional reporting by Dewey Sim
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