High-profile Uighur scholar and government critic Ilham Tohti denied being engaged in separatism yesterday as he stood trial in Urumqi, the capital of the western province of Xinjiang.

The former Beijing economics professor is accused of fanning ethnic hatred and advocating the overthrow of the government.

His supporters claim that he is a moderate who has sought a middle road in resolving the region’s ethnic tensions and that his critiques of government policy have always stayed within the law.

His lawyer Liu Xiaoyuan said that Mr Tohti had denied the allegations in court yesterday.

“He’s against separatism. He has only talked about some of the legal and cultural issues of Xinjiang. He’s against splitting the country,” said Mr Liu.

His trial, held under tight security at the Urumqi People’s Intermediate Court, is expected to last two days but it is not clear when a verdict will be announced.