Masud Sabri, also known as Masʿūd Ṣabrī ( ug, مەسئۇت سابرى, مسعود صبري; zh, s=麦斯武德·沙比尔, t=麥斯武德·沙比爾, p=Màisīwǔdé·Shābì'ěr; 1886–1952), was an ethnic Uyghur politician of the

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...

who served as the Governor of

Sinkiang Xinjiang, SASM/GNC: ''Xinjang''; zh, c=, p=Xīnjiāng; formerly romanized as Sinkiang (, ), officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC), located in the northwest ...

during the

Ili Rebellion The Ili Rebellion () (Üch Wiläyt inqilawi) was a Uyghur separatist movement backed by the Soviet Union against the Kuomintang government of the Republic of China in 1944. After the start of the rebellion, the rebels established the Provision ...

. He received education at Kulja and

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

and was a

Pan-Turkist Pan-Turkism is a political movement that emerged during the 1880s among Turkic intellectuals who lived in the Russian region of Kazan (Tatarstan), Caucasus (modern-day Azerbaijan) and the Ottoman Empire (modern-day Turkey), with its aim bei ...

Chiang Kai-shek Chiang Kai-shek (31 October 1887 – 5 April 1975), also known as Chiang Chung-cheng and Jiang Jieshi, was a Chinese Nationalist politician, revolutionary, and military leader who served as the leader of the Republic of China (ROC) from 1928 ...

appointed him the first non-

Han Han may refer to: Ethnic groups * Han Chinese, or Han People (): the name for the largest ethnic group in China, which also constitutes the world's largest ethnic group. ** Han Taiwanese (): the name for the ethnic group of the Taiwanese p ...

governor of any Chinese province during the twentieth century.

Education

After attending

University of Istanbul , image = Istanbul_University_logo.svg , image_size = 200px , latin_name = Universitas Istanbulensis , motto = tr, Tarihten Geleceğe Bilim Köprüsü , mottoeng = Science Bridge from Past to the Future , established = 1453 1846 1933 ...

and learning medicine, Sabri returned to Sinkiang to become a

pharmacist A pharmacist, also known as a chemist (Commonwealth English) or a druggist (North American and, archaically, Commonwealth English), is a healthcare professional who prepares, controls and distributes medicines and provides advice and instructi ...

Career

Governor of Sinkiang

Yang Zengxin Yang Zengxin (; March 6, 1864 – July 7, 1928) was the ruler of Xinjiang after the Xinhai Revolution in 1911 until his assassination in 1928. Life Yang Zengxin was born in Mengzi, Yunnan Province, in 1864. Though a Han Chinese, he had c ...

jailed Masud Sabri for pan turkist activities and then deported him from the province. Masud supported the

First East Turkestan Republic The Turkic Islamic Republic of East Turkestan (TIRET; ug, شەرقىي تۈركىستان تۈرك ئىسلام جۇمھۇرىيىتى, , Шәрқий Түркистан Түрк-Ислам Җумхурийити; ) was a short-lived breakaway ...

while based at Aqsu with Mahmud Sijan. After it was crushed by the 36th Division (National Revolutionary Army) Masud fled to British India and then to

Nanking Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and the second largest city in the East China region. T ...

, where he joined the

Kuomintang The Kuomintang (KMT), also referred to as the Guomindang (GMD), the Nationalist Party of China (NPC) or the Chinese Nationalist Party (CNP), is a major political party in the Republic of China, initially on the Chinese mainland and in Tai ...

government. The Central Military Academy and Central University accepted some of his relatives as students in Nanking after he joined the Central Executive Committee of the Kuomintang. In 1942, Masud Sabri was serving on the 36 seated State Council (Chinese National Political Council), the only other Muslim member was the

Chinese Muslim Islam has been practiced in China since the 7th century CE.. Muslims are a minority group in China, representing 1.6-2 percent of the total population (21,667,000- 28,210,795) according to various estimates. Though Hui Muslims are the most numerou ...

General Ma Lin.

Bai Chongxi Bai Chongxi (18 March 1893 – 2 December 1966; , , Xiao'erjing: ) was a Chinese general in the National Revolutionary Army of the Republic of China (ROC) and a prominent Chinese Nationalist leader. He was of Hui ethnicity and of the Musli ...

, the Defence Minister of China and a Muslim, was considered for being appointed Governor of Sinkiang. The position was then given to Masud Sabri, who was pro Kuomintang and anti-Soviet. He replaced

Zhang Zhizhong Zhang Zhizhong or Chang Chih-chung (27 October 1890 – 6 April 1969) was a Chinese military commander and politician, general in the National Revolutionary Army of the Republic of China and later a pro-Communist politician in the People's Rep ...

Ehmetjan Qasim Ehmetjan Qasim ( ug, ئەخمەتجان قاسىمى; April 15, 1914 – August 27, 1949) was the president of the Second East Turkestan Republic.劉學銚，新疆史論，知書房，2013年2月，，第192頁杜榮坤、紀大椿、任一飛� ...

, the Communist Uyghur Ili leader, repeatedly demanded that Masud Sabri be sacked as governor.UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS TO RESEOLVE POLITICAL PROBLEMS IN SINKIANG; EXTENT OF SOVIET AID AND ENCOURAGEMENT TO REBEL GROUPS IN SINKIANG; BORDER INCIDENT AT PEITASHAN
/ref> Masud Sabri was an opponent of the Soviet sponsored

Second East Turkistan Republic The East Turkestan Republic (ETR) was a short-lived satellite state of the Soviet Union in northwest Xinjiang (East Turkestan), between November 12, 1944, and December 22, 1949. To differentiate it from the First East Turkestan Republic (1933� ...

in Ili during the

, opposing all efforts to negotiate with

along with others like Wang Tseng-shan, a

, who was the KMT commissioner of Civil Affairs in the

Coalition Government from 1946–47, and was associated with the CC Clique. Masud Sabri was also a CC Clique member, as was the

Tatar The Tatars ()Tatar
in the Collins English Dictionary is an umbrella term for different

Burhan Shahidi Burhan Shahidi ( ug, بۇرھان شەھىدى, برهان شهيدي, translit=Burhan Shehidi; zh, s=包尔汉·沙希迪, t=包爾漢·沙希迪, p=Bāo'érhàn·Shāxīdí; russian: Бурхан Шахиди; tt-Cyrl, Борһан Шәһид ...

and the KMT-general and Han-Chinese

Wu Zhongxin Wu Zhongxin, or Wu Chung-hsin (; March 15, 1884 – December 16, 1959) was a General and government official of the Republic of China. He was associated with the CC Clique. In his tenure as the Chairman of the Mongolian and Tibetan Affairs Commiss ...

. He led the Sinkiang coalition government from 1948-1949 Masud Sabri formed a group of pan turkists with

Muhammad Amin Bughra Muhammad Amin Bughra (also Muḥammad Amīn Bughra; ug, مۇھەممەد ئىمىن بۇغرا, محمد أمين بغرا, ; ), sometimes known by his Han name Mao Deming () and his Turkish name Mehmet Emin Buğra; 1901–1965), was a Turkic ...

and

Isa Yusuf Alptekin Isa Yusuf Alptekin or ʿĪsa Yūsuf Alptekin ( (عيسى يوسف الپتگین or عيسى يوسف الپتكین); Turkish: İsa Yusuf Alptekin; ; 1901 – 17 December 1995), known in China as Ai Sha (), was a Uyghur politician who served ...

to join the Kuomintang

coalition government in Sinkiang, opposing the Uyghur Communist Ili regime in the

Second East Turkestan Republic The East Turkestan Republic (ETR) was a short-lived satellite state of the Soviet Union in northwest Xinjiang (East Turkestan), between November 12, 1944, and December 22, 1949. To differentiate it from the First East Turkestan Republic (1933� ...

.There were 3 Effendis, (Üch Äpändi) (ئۈچ ئەپەندى) Aisa Alptekin, Memtimin Bughra (Muhammad Amin Bughra), and Masud Sabri. The Second East Turkestan Republic attacked them as Kuomintang "puppets". Ehmetjan Qasim's government in Ili attacked Isa Yusuf Alptekin, Muhammad Amin Bughra, and Masud Sabri as supporters of the Kuomintang and puppets of imperialism. Masud Sabri and fellow Pan-Turkic

Jadidist The Jadids were Muslim modernist reformers within the Russian Empire in the late 19th and early 20th century. They normally referred to themselves by the Turkic terms ''Taraqqiparvarlar'' ('progressives'), ''Ziyalilar'' ('intellectuals') or simpl ...

and East Turkestan Independence activist

rejected the Soviet imposition of the name "

Uyghur people The Uyghurs; ; ; ; zh, s=, t=, p=Wéiwú'ěr, IPA: ( ), alternatively spelled Uighurs, Uygurs or Uigurs, are a Turkic ethnic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the general region of Central Asia, Central and East As ...

" upon the Turkic people of Sinkiang. They wanted instead the name "Turkic ethnicity" (Tujue zu in Chinese) to be applied to their people. Masud Sabri also viewed the

Hui people The Hui people ( zh, c=, p=Huízú, w=Hui2-tsu2, Xiao'erjing: , dng, Хуэйзў, ) are an East Asian ethnoreligious group predominantly composed of Chinese-speaking adherents of Islam. They are distributed throughout China, mainly in the ...

as Muslim Han Chinese and separate from his own people. The names "Türk" or "Türki" in particular were demanded by Bughra as the real name for his people. He slammed Sheng Shicai for his designation of Turkic Muslims into different ethnicities which could sow disunion among Turkic Muslims. In 1948 Sabri turned down the proposal of being appointed ambassador to Iran from China. In January 1949,

succeeded Masud Sabri as the chairman of Sinkiang Provincial Government. The Communist Party placed him under detention and imprisoned him in 1951. He died in 1952, still incarcerated. Alternatively, according to Xinjiang specialist Sean R. Roberts, the CCP had Sabri executed in 1951.

References

* * *

External links

The Soviets in Xinjiang (1911-1949) by Mark Dickens
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sabri, Masud History of Xinjiang Uyghurs Chinese Muslims Chinese Nationalist military figures Republic of China politicians from Xinjiang Prisoners who died in Chinese detention 1886 births 1952 deaths People from Yining County Darülfünun alumni