From top to bottom, corruption continues to pervade China that even the sending of Uighur Muslim pilgrims to Mecca in Saudi Arabia is an opportunity for local officials to earn extra money illegally.

Since the Uighurs, who are from Xinjiang Province, can only go to Mecca for the annual Haj, the government allows them to join the Islamic pilgrimage if they are part of a government-organized trip.

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Such a rule presents an opportunity for corrupt local officials, who allow unqualified people to go by asking for bribes or neglecting the oversight and management of the pilgrimage, reports China Daily.

The English-language newspaper accuses officials from the Kizilsu prefecture of breaching Communist Party discipline, dereliction of duties, abuse of power to gain personally, and arranging power-for-money deals. It specifically named the prefecture's ex-director of pilgrimage affairs, the head of the public security bureau and the mayor of Artux City.

Full-time Whistleblower says 32 officials are under investigation.

China, which organized 14,000 pilgrimages to Mecca in 2014, requires the Uighurs to be part of an organized group to ensure that its minority Muslim population won't link with extremist Islamic organizations like al-Qaeda and the Islamic State when they go overseas.

Because of reports that the requirement fuels corruption, human rights groups criticized the policy, done through restricting visa issuance and curbing the foreign travel of Uighurs, and many now see the chance to live abroad as an opportunity to leave a life under a harsh regime.

It also leaves the Uighurs vulnerable to recruiters from extremist groups. According to China Daily, the Shanghai Police arrested on Wednesday 10 Turkish nationals who were suspected of providing fake passports to Uighurs who are considered terrorist suspects.

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