Ikram Nurmehmet, aged 32, studied cinema at the University of Marmara in Turkey and then returned to China. In 2019 he directed Elephant in the Car (which I haven’t seen) — a story of two young Uyghur men, a Chinese woman, Xiao, and a taxi driver.
The taxi driver picks up all three and he soon hits it off with the two Uyghurs who enjoy some music together on the taxi’s stereo system. Xiao becomes uneasy in the presence of the two Uyghurs and eventually tells the driver to stop the taxi and she gets out. It appears that this film — and maybe others that he has directed – have angered the Chinese authorities.
Ikram was arrested on 29 May 2023, jailed since then, and charged with “terrorist activities”, but not yet put on trial. “Terrorism” in China can mean just about anything the authorities want it to mean, even making a film which shows Uyghurs in a favourable light. There are claims that Ilkram has been tortured and held for long periods in a darkened cell.
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