China put seven students of imprisoned Uighur scholar Ilham Tohti on trial on separatism charges for their involvement in his website, which the nation's government says promotes disunity.
The students may face prison sentences of five to 15 years on conviction, according to Li Fangping, the defense lawyer for Tohti, an economics professor. Some of the students pleaded guilty at a hearing in the Urumqi Intermediate People's Court in northwestern China's Xinjiang region, Li said.
Tohti was sentenced to life in prison in September after he was convicted of promoting separatism in Xinjiang in a verdict that underlines China's intolerance toward criticism of its ethnic policies. The court also ordered the seizure of all of Tohti's assets. The sentence was upheld on appeal this month.