Although social media pile-ons are nothing new today, it is nonetheless disheartening to see a 75-year-old researcher receive death threats and abuse for questioning Western criticisms against China's Xinjiang.​

Australian scholar Maureen Huebel, who in March tweeted about her travel and research plan in China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, is facing online bullying and harassment from anti-China forces.

She says she's experiencing "quite a lot of pressures" around her.

In the past week, multiple Chinese scholars and academic institutions have voiced their support for Huebel's academic research in response to the unfair treatment, as well as unsubstantiated accusations against her.

Eleven universities and institutions across China that have long been committed to researching Xinjiang-related subjects have issued open letters in support of Huebel's research, among which six universities are located in Xinjiang.

These institutions were Jinan University, Zhejiang Normal University, Southwest University of Political Science and Law, Northwest University of Political Science and Law, Lanzhou University, Shihezi University, Talimu University, Xinjiang University, Xinjiang Normal University, Kashi University, and Yili Normal University.

Xinjiang Normal University said in the open letter that they were "deeply shocked by the unfair treatment" Huebel faced due to her narratives online.

"The fact that your Twitter account was blocked indicates that the right to freedom of speech in the West is not only insufficiently respected and protected, but also undermined to some extent. We admire your commitment to conducting independent research in Xinjiang, despite facing irrational treatment. You are welcome to visit Xinjiang to explore the place, experience the economic development in this region, and find the truth about the social, religious and cultural development in Xinjiang," the letter said.  

Meanwhile, according to the open letter from the Institute for Communication and Borderland Governance at Jinan University, scholars there have noted that Huebel has made a plan to visit Xinjiang in 2024 to study poverty alleviation measures in the region.

They stressed the spirit of science in the letter, saying the rights of scholars to conduct independent research and express their views freely should always be respected and defended. "As an academic center focusing on borderland research for a long time, we would like to get into contact with you and engage in multidisciplinary academic research in Xinjiang through various forms, including but not limited to joint research teams, and to provide you with assistance to the fullest extent during this process," the letter stated.

Huebel used to study at the University of Melbourne and Monash University in Australia. She told CGTN in an earlier interview, along with her husband, that she needed to find the truth as a scholar, and challenged the mainstream narrative about China in the West, "even though being called a 'sophisticated Chinese propagandist' and a bot."

In a Global Times article explaining why she started to get interested in China, Huebel said the growing homelessness and poverty in Australia and her friends' higher standard of living in China caught her attention.

And she believes poverty alleviation is critical for any economy to improve. She learned that Xinjiang has seen the most remarkable economic development across the country. This is the reason why she opted to visit the far northwestern autonomous region and explore what lessons can be applied in her home country.

On Huebel's Twitter webpage, she has pinned the tweet about her Xinjiang study on top, saying she's actively learning about Xinjiang's multilingual and multicultural environment. Her objective – impartial, and independent research on Xinjiang-related issues – have won her strong support from Chinese academia.