 As a result, one Canadian newspaper, in turn, openly complained about the use of this "Chinese name" to refer to him, accusing Chinese officials of "refus[ing] to recognize the name on his Canadian passport ... instead call[ing] him by his Chinese name, Yu Shanjiang".In 1994, while Celil was living in Xinjiang, he was arrested, charged with several murders and terrorism-related activities, and imprisoned by Chinese police.He escaped from China by way of Kyrgyzstan and Turkey, and sought asylum in Ankara through the United Nations High Commission for Refugees.