Sattar Sawut (沙塔尔·沙吾提) is a Uyghur former Xinjiang education official. Xinjiang authorities announced on April 6, 2021 that he had been convicted of separatism and accepting bribes and sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve, permanent deprivation of political rights, and confiscation of personal property.
Dui Hua identifies Sawut as the former director-general of the Xinjiang education bureau and records the same death-with-reprieve sentence. The Associated Press reported the case the following day and noted that the proceedings were closed.
Official allegations
According to the official account reported by Xinhua, authorities alleged that Sawut led a “separatist criminal group” in the education sector and used minority-language textbooks to insert content they characterized as separatist, violent, terrorist, or religious-extremist. Xinhua also reported an allegation that he accepted 15.05 million yuan in bribes. These are official claims and are not presented here as independently verified findings.
Independent reporting and criticism
Radio Free Asia reported criticism of the case from Human Rights Watch’s Sophie Richardson and lawyer Teng Biao, including concerns about the fairness of the proceedings and the use of previously approved textbooks as evidence. Dui Hua, CECC and other monitoring organizations have continued to record Sawut’s case.
Status and evidence limits
The 2021 sentence was death with a two-year reprieve. The Associated Press noted that such sentences are commonly commuted to life imprisonment, but no located source confirms that commutation in Sawut’s case. No current detention location, release, or execution has been verified. The latest searches for this package found no newer public status update changing the documented sentence.
The roster form “Shataer‧Shawuti” and the international form “Sattar Sawut” refer to the same person; the verified Chinese name is 沙塔尔·沙吾提.
Media Profile & Archive: Sattar Sawut / 沙塔尔·沙吾提 — Media Profile & Archive.