Uyghur Lost in Translation at Guangzhou Police Stataion

As I was queuing to renew my "Temporary Residence Permit" in a Guangzhou 派出所paichusuo (police station) last week, I noted the following conversation between an emigrant from Xinjiang and the Guangzhou police:

"First write down the names," said the trainee, at least I think he was a trainee as he wasn't uniformed like the other officers and he was rearranging chairs and straightening up the desk of the officer on duty.

The Uyghur left the station and returned ten minutes later with a piece of paper with some writing on it.

"You must write Chinese," the trainee said, pointing at the piece of paper. The Uyghur tried to answer, but his words were unintelligible. "You must write Zhongwen (Chinese). Understand?" The trainee repeated, smiling, not at the Xinjiang emigrant, but at the awkwardness of the situation. "You must write Chinese characters." The Uyghur said Zhongwen and pointed at the piece of paper.

"Where are you from? From where? Where are you from?"

"Xinjiang," the Uyghur muttered.

The trainee smiled again and said, "What is the Chinese name. You must write Chinese, like on a 身份证shenfenzheng (ID card). Do you have your ID?" The Uyghur shook his head.

It was then that the officer on duty looked up at the Uyghur and said, "You don't have your ID card?" Legally Chinese must carry their IDs on them at all times. (In fact, even foreigners are required to carry their passports; copies are insufficient). The officer stood up, picked up his tea thermos, and walked across the room.

"You must write Chinese," said the trainee. "This isn't Chinese."

The officer returned, his thermos steaming, and said, "Ni shi shenme ren?" which is a slightly impolite way of asking who someone is, a phrasing more typical of the army than the police--a phrase that requires all of your information, not just your name.
"What? Your older brother? You must write his name down in Chinese. On a Xinjiang ID there are two lines for names. The second line is Chinese. And below that is the ID number. You must write those down." The Uyghur looked down at the paper and stood there confused. Other people came with questions and the officer began answering theirs. When I left a few minutes later, the Uyghur was still standing there.