Tohti Tunyaz

Who is Tohti Tunyaz?

Tohti Tuniyaz is an ethnic Uyghur historian and writer. Tohti graduated from the history department of the Central Institute of Nationalities, Beijing, in 1984 and was assigned to work for the China National Standing Committee. During this time he reportedly formed a close relationship with former Xinjiang governors Seyfuddin Eziz and Ismail Emet, and was involved in the translation of Eziz's works. Tohti began studying for his PhD at Tokyo University's School of Humanities in Japan in 1995, specializing in Uyghur history and ethnic relations. He has reportedly published several papers on Uyghur history in Japan, and has published a book in Beijing.