After a letter from Rebiya Kadeer's family to her was made public Tuesday, her sons, daughter and brother in China talked about their sorrow and expectations of their mother and sister.
Kadeer's eldest son Khahar was a witness of the riot on July 5.
"I saw the whole thing from the balcony of my apartment at the 12th floor in Shanxixiangzi Alley," he said. " Mobs came from the south. They smashed shops, burnt police vehicles and buses, and beat passers-by. I believe no one in Xinjiang expects such violence to occur."
Khahar, eldest son of Rebiya Kadeer, is interviewed in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, July 31, 2009. Family members of Rebiya Kadeer hope she will listen to their appeals for nonviolence and unity, according to recent interviews.
As his uncle Memet had received a call from his mother six hours before the riot took place, Khahar thought Kadeer must have been involved.
Khahar, his sister Roxingul and uncle Memet wrote a letter to Kadeer, asking her not to organize violence or undermine the peaceful life in Xinjiang, on July 24.
"She is my mother. It is not good to say things bad about her. But we just hope she can pull herself out of these (separatist) activities," he said. "Maybe she can listen to the advice from her children."
But he admitted Kadeer did not listen to them much.
"Before the riot when she called from the United States, I tried several times to persuade her not to harm ethnic harmony here or try to separate the country. She didn't take my words seriously."
"What we want is a peaceful life," Khahar said.
Khahar runs a 2.67-hectare orchard in Aksu in southern Xinjiang. He had planned a family vacation there in July.
"A total of 15 family members, including me, my sister and uncle, would go on the vacation. But the plan has to be delayed because of the riot," he said.
