The World Uyghur Congress (WUC) has criticized measures recently imposed by Beijing authorities, saying they will “trample” freedom of belief and foment religious persecution in Xinjiang.
A BBC report quoted the WUC spokesman Dilshat Reshit saying that the Beijing authorities recently have strengthened the implementation of the “five strict measures” intended to maintain stability in Xinjiang, all of which are deemed “provocative” by the local Uyghur people.
The so-called “five strict measures” are: fight against foreign hostile forces, strictly control any dangerous local people, crack down on criminal activities, strictly manage Party officials, and strictly educate cadres from the populace.
Recent reports on mainland media have stated that authorities in Xinjiang autonomous region also recently strengthened the implementation of 32 stability-maintenance requirements in order to reinforce the management of religious affairs and ban illegal scripture reading and preaching sites.
Authorities have investigated and punished members of 214 such sites where 1,478 people were involved; 1,498 people have also been “corrected” for wearing the distinctive Uighur ethnic outfit.
Dilshat said that the Chinese Communist authorities are intensifying the conflicts in Xinjiang and causing the Uighur people to face a crisis of faith.
The WUC website states that there are armed police outside every mosque and that house-to-house “strike hard” raids are conducted every three months.
In the past, many violent conflicts have occurred in Xinjiang, including bloodshed in Kashgar, Hotan and Urumqi. Beijing has actively pursued a policy of increasing the immigration of Han Chinese into the area.
The Uyghurs are Muslims and Turkic-speaking and have continually been frustrated with Beijing’s tight control over their religious practices and with the widening of the wealth gap between Uyghurs and the nonnative Han.
Xinjiang, wedged between Mongolia, China, Kazakhstan, India, Pakistan and Afghanistan, is rich in natural resources such as gas and oil reserves.
Read the original Chinese article.
