0:00:02.319,0:00:04.322
Food is all about connection.

0:00:04.322,0:00:06.762
I know for me, the taste [br]of a piping hot Earl Grey

0:00:06.762,0:00:09.287
always reminds me of comfort[br]and the security of home.

0:00:09.287,0:00:11.913
And, you know, particularly [br]when we feel disconnected,

0:00:11.913,0:00:14.610
that taste can mean everything.

0:00:14.610,0:00:18.487
However, there are some people [br]who simply cannot go home.

0:00:18.487,0:00:19.708
People like the Uyghurs,

0:00:19.708,0:00:21.613
a Muslim minority group[br]from Western China.

0:00:21.613,0:00:24.521
Isobel Yeung went there undercover [br]last year to report on camps

0:00:24.521,0:00:26.888
where China has imprisoned[br]more than a million Uyghurs

0:00:26.888,0:00:29.941
to quote unquote "re-educate"[br]them away from their traditions.

0:00:29.941,0:00:32.289
One of these traditions is [br]their distinctly unique cuisine

0:00:32.289,0:00:33.339
and style of cooking.

0:00:33.339,0:00:36.101
And for the more than one million[br]Uyghurs now living outside of China,

0:00:36.101,0:00:37.576
it's never been more important.

0:00:39.079,0:00:41.886
PRESERVING CULTURE

0:00:45.870,0:00:47.937
So what's the secret[br]to making good laghman?

0:00:48.057,0:00:50.572
The dough has to be prepared right.

0:00:57.678,0:00:59.394
(Ysobel) Who taught you[br]how to do this?

0:00:59.394,0:01:01.034
My mom.

0:01:01.034,0:01:04.681
We grow up eating laghman,[br]making laghman.

0:01:04.681,0:01:07.339
In my country, I was a nurse.

0:01:07.696,0:01:11.612
[After] coming to America,[br][I became] a restaurant chef.

0:01:13.520,0:01:14.743
(Ysobel) Oh, my god.

0:01:27.608,0:01:29.273
(Ysobel) Wow, perfect!

0:01:29.651,0:01:33.418
Oh, my god, that texture is amazing,[br]they're like the perfect consistency.

0:01:33.688,0:01:35.947
Uyghur food is really interesting[br]because it does seem

0:01:35.947,0:01:38.633
like a mix of different types of foods.

0:01:38.633,0:01:39.523
Yes.

0:01:39.523,0:01:41.913
Like, there's definitely [br]some Chinese elements in there

0:01:41.913,0:01:44.218
with noodles, and garlic, and ginger,

0:01:44.218,0:01:47.101
but then there's also a lot of like [br]Central Asian flavors, right?

0:01:48.721,0:01:51.495
(Ysobel) <i>Adila and her mom, [br]Maria, are Uyghurs.</i>

0:01:51.495,0:01:54.888
<i>They come from north-west China[br]in a region called Xinjian.</i>

0:01:55.459,0:01:59.181
<i>Unlike the majority of China's population[br]who are Han Chinese,</i>

0:01:59.181,0:02:02.201
<i>the Uyghurs are mostly[br]Muslim Turkic ethnicity</i>

0:02:02.201,0:02:05.917
<i>who have their own language and[br]traditions much closer to Central Asia.</i>

0:02:06.365,0:02:10.137
<i>My favorite Uyghur dish[br]is laghman or lamian,</i>

0:02:10.137,0:02:14.898
<i>hand-pulled noodles served with meat,[br]pepper, scallions, cumin, and spices.</i>

0:02:18.925,0:02:21.254
What does the lamian mean to you?

0:02:21.254,0:02:25.422
Laghman is a traditional dish[br]passed down from the ancestors.

0:02:25.422,0:02:31.204
That is also why we teach our children[br]how to make laghman and tell them,

0:02:31.204,0:02:33.798
"Don't forget Uyghur culture.

0:02:34.270,0:02:37.132
Remember us when you are making laghman."

0:02:42.761,0:02:45.343
Thank you, bye. [br]Have a good one. Thank you.

0:02:45.994,0:02:49.546
(Ysobel) <i>Adila moved from China[br]to Boston to study when she was 17.</i>

0:02:50.179,0:02:51.561
<i>Almost a decade later,</i>

0:02:51.561,0:02:55.254
<i>she opened the only Uyghur restaurant[br]in Massachusetts at the time,</i>

0:02:55.254,0:02:57.507
<i>with dishes based on her mom's recipes.</i>

0:03:00.008,0:03:04.596
<i>During that time, Uyghur lives in China [br]have deteriorated dramatically.</i>

0:03:05.165,0:03:08.365
<i>In an effort to, in their words, [br]"combat terrorism,"</i>

0:03:08.365,0:03:11.468
<i>the Chinese government[br]has sent over one million Uyghurs</i>

0:03:11.468,0:03:15.275
<i>to sprawling prison-like camps [br]over the last three years.</i>

0:03:15.653,0:03:18.559
<i>Here they're frequently [br]interrogated and tortured,</i>

0:03:18.713,0:03:20.472
<i>banned from practicing Islam,</i>

0:03:20.723,0:03:23.826
<i>and forced to recite [br]Chinese Communist Party ideology.</i>

0:03:25.520,0:03:29.623
<i>Xinjian has been transformed[br]into a dystopian surveillance state.</i>

0:03:30.654,0:03:34.169
<i>Maria and Adila's own family [br]have been swept up in the crackdown.</i>

0:03:35.290,0:03:38.593
<i>In 2018, Adila's father-- [br]Maria's husband,</i>

0:03:38.593,0:03:40.202
<i>stopped answering their calls.</i>

0:03:40.790,0:03:44.019
<i>Eventually, they learned [br]he too had been taken to the camps.</i>

0:03:44.783,0:03:47.217
My family are on my mind[br]and in front of my eyes

0:03:47.217,0:03:48.709
all the time when I'm working.

0:03:48.709,0:03:52.224
If I don't think about them,[br]I might lose my motivation.

0:03:57.657,0:04:00.007
The father of my children is in jail.

0:04:08.504,0:04:11.794
(Ysobel) <i>When Adila is not working [br]in her restaurant six days a week,</i>

0:04:11.794,0:04:15.416
<i>she's searching for any information[br]she can find about her dad.</i>

0:04:15.416,0:04:18.340
This is my father, born in 1971.

0:04:18.340,0:04:21.717
What did he tell you about [br]how the situation is changing in Xinjian?

0:04:21.717,0:04:25.995
He's like, you know,[br]we can't talk directly.

0:04:25.995,0:04:29.025
We always said, <i>cold</i> or <i>warm</i>.

0:04:29.025,0:04:31.422
Because he's worried about [br]the Chinese government listening?

0:04:31.422,0:04:32.193
Yeah.

0:04:32.193,0:04:37.318
And if anyone get detained,[br]they would say, "He left."

0:04:38.686,0:04:41.993
My father always call me [inaudible].

0:04:42.920,0:04:47.610
(Adila's father recording)[br]<i>Adi hun. Adi hun. Adi hun.</i>

0:04:48.770,0:04:53.299
<i>I miss you, Adi hun.</i>

0:04:53.803,0:04:56.123
<i>Adi hun, my child.</i>

0:04:56.302,0:04:57.955
<i>Adi hun, my child.</i>

0:04:58.518,0:04:59.651
I like it a lot.

0:05:03.280,0:05:06.696
(Ysobel) <i>Uyghurs is China can be [br]locked away for anything from praying,</i>

0:05:06.696,0:05:07.879
<i>wearing a long beard,</i>

0:05:07.879,0:05:09.730
<i>or having relatives abroad.</i>

0:05:09.730,0:05:13.220
<i>In Adila's father's case,[br]it was for fasting during Ramadan.</i>

0:05:14.811,0:05:17.410
What do you think[br]your dad's life is like, right now?

0:05:17.645,0:05:20.903
Oh, I don't want to think about this[br]like, it's very hard.

0:05:20.903,0:05:22.753
I get scared, you know.

0:05:27.354,0:05:29.264
He can't eat a proper meal.

0:05:29.496,0:05:32.390
My mom cooked for him every day.

0:05:32.962,0:05:35.294
I can't think about what he's eating now.

0:05:36.246,0:05:39.603
(Ysobel) <i>Last year, Adila took part[br]in a social media campaign</i>

0:05:39.603,0:05:41.327
<i>called #MetooUyghur.</i>

0:05:41.327,0:05:44.132
<i>She's also given testimony [br]about her missing relatives</i>

0:05:44.132,0:05:47.032
<i>and lobbied Senators[br]like Elizabeth Warren,</i>

0:05:47.032,0:05:50.236
<i>but speaking out has exposed her [br]on Chinese social media.</i>

0:05:50.236,0:05:56.726
I was dragged into a WeChat group [br]with 500 Chinese there.

0:05:57.265,0:06:00.778
They were seeing me like I'm a terrorist,

0:06:00.778,0:06:03.931
and they post all the information [br]about the restaurant,

0:06:03.931,0:06:05.568
my personal information,

0:06:05.568,0:06:07.096
where did I go to school,

0:06:07.096,0:06:10.471
where do I live, my car, everything.

0:06:11.314,0:06:12.977
Wow, that must've been scary.

0:06:12.977,0:06:15.034
I was so scared.

0:06:20.474,0:06:23.337
(Ysobel) <i>In spite of the threats,[br]or maybe because of them,</i>

0:06:23.337,0:06:27.010
<i>the work that Adila, Maria, and [br]chef Arkin are doing at the restaurant</i>

0:06:27.010,0:06:29.504
<i>feels more important now than ever.</i>

0:06:30.020,0:06:31.625
Wow, that's one massive noodle!

0:06:31.883,0:06:35.465
<i>Just having a restaurant like this [br]advertising Halal food</i>

0:06:35.465,0:06:37.673
<i>is no longer allowed in Xinjiang.</i>

0:06:37.868,0:06:39.913
It seems like for all of you,

0:06:39.913,0:06:41.856
you know, having this Uyghur restaurant,

0:06:41.856,0:06:45.430
is so much more than[br]just about selling the food.

0:06:45.430,0:06:48.980
It's about introducing a culture[br]and making sure it stays alive.

0:06:49.228,0:06:53.029
(Adila) There are many many jobs [br]we can make money, like easier jobs.

0:06:53.179,0:06:54.967
A restaurant is really hard,

0:06:54.967,0:06:56.598
every day,

0:06:56.598,0:06:57.858
a year long.

0:06:58.159,0:06:59.645
If you like my food,

0:06:59.645,0:07:01.483
if you like me,

0:07:01.483,0:07:05.332
this is the way that you get[br]into Uyghur people.