China Tightens Xinjiang Security, Targets Tibetan Environmentalist

[TruthSeeker]

China Tightens Xinjiang Security, Targets Tibetan Environmentalist

Kate Woodsome | Washington 02 July 2010

China has installed 40,000 security cameras throughout the capital of the Xinjiang region days before the first anniversary of the country’s worst ethnic violence in decades. The new security measures in the ethnic Uighur region come as prominent intellectuals in neighboring Tibet also face increasing pressure from the state.

The new cameras will peer inside buses, supermarkets, department stores and thousands of other public spaces across Urumqi.

Chinese state media say police will constantly monitor the high-definition surveillance cameras to ensure the capital remains peaceful for all ethnic groups.

But Corinna-Barbara Francis of Amnesty International says creating a police state will not solve the problems among Xinjiang’s ethnic groups.

“I think what the government needs to address are long-standing policies that have discriminated against Uighurs, as well as some of the other ethnic minorities living in the region,” says Francis.

Monday is the first anniversary of deadly riots that erupted between the region’s mostly Muslim ethnic Uighurs and members of the Han ethnic majority. At least 200 people died.

China blames Uighur separatists for the unrest, but rights groups say Beijing’s discriminatory economic and cultural policies against the Uighurs have raised ethnic tensions to a boiling point.

Lasting tension

A year after the violence, thousands of police are patrolling the streets of Urumqi and activists say many people arrested during the riots are still missing.

Francis, of Amnesty International, says Chinese authorities have intensified what she called a “strike-hard campaign” to control the population.

“There is a very, very somber mood among certainly ethnic minorities and probably the entire population because if the groups are not getting along, that’s going to affect everyone in the region,” says Francis.

The Muslim Uighurs of Xinjiang share many of the same concerns as Tibetan Buddhists, who complain China’s Communist government is trying to eradicate their culture and religion in order to create what it calls a harmonious society.

Pressure on Tibet

Frustrated Tibetans rose up against Chinese authorities two years ago in a rare, violent protest against Beijing. Rights groups say prominent Tibetans not involved in politics have faced increasing repression by the government since then.

Among those targeted are three brothers once lauded by Beijing for their environmental protection work. One of the brothers, Rinchen Samdrup, goes on trial on security charges Saturday in eastern Tibet. He and his brother, Jigme Namgyal, were detained in August after accusing local authorities of poaching.

Kate Saunders, the communications director for the International Campaign for Tibet, says China has politicized the case.

“There’s already been early indicators from China that [Rinchen Samdrup] may be facing charges of incitement to split the country,” says Saunders. “Those are accusations that can carry a very heavy penalty in China.”

Rinchen Samdrup’s brother, Karma, was sentenced to 15 years in prison last week for decade-old charges that he bought looted antiques. Supporters say the charges are false, and that the award-winning environmentalist is really being punished for speaking up in defense of his detained brothers.

Saunders says the arrest of the Samdrup brothers has had a chilling effect across Tibet.

“It means that others who are doing similar work in civil society are very vulnerable indeed, and it’s certainly sent a strong signal to those individuals and it’s a sign of a broadening, deepening crackdown,” says Saunders.

Karma Samdrup’s lawyer is considering appealing his sentence, but rights groups say the Chinese government is showing no signs of releasing the tight grip it has on Tibet or Xinjiang.

China Tightens Xinjiang Security, Targets Tibetan Environmentalist | Human Rights and Law | English

 

[TruthSeeker]

Job discrimination riles China's Uighurs

By Marianne Barriaux (AFP) – 1 hour ago

URUMQI, China — Tursun's eyes well up as she describes life as a Uighur in China, which she says is marred by overt discrimination in the job market -- a source of much bitterness in the restive city of Urumqi.

"There are so many young Uighurs here who have been abroad, who speak perfect English, perfect Japanese," the shopkeeper says in the violence-scarred capital of far-western Xinjiang region.

"But they can't find good jobs despite that," she says, gesturing to rows of market stalls and the vendors minding them.

"I've been for many job interviews here but they wouldn't hire me because I'm a Uighur."

Many Uighurs in Xinjiang complain about what they say is a job market openly skewed against them, with many of the better-paid professional and technical jobs going to members of the country's Han Chinese majority.

That resentment boiled over on July 5 last year, when some mainly Muslim Uighurs took to the streets of Urumqi in a protest that descended into violence against the Han Chinese. Han mobs then sought revenge in the following days.

The government said the unrest -- the worst ethnic clashes in China for decades -- left nearly 200 dead and 1,700 injured. So far, 26 people have been sentenced to death for their roles in the mayhem.

Tursun, who asked that her real name be withheld out of fear of reprisals, maintains a steely stare as tears begin to roll down her cheeks.

"They bully us," she whispers, as outside, in Urumqi's Uighur quarter, security forces wielding shields and batons march dozens at a time and police patrol on motorbikes and in vans for Monday's first anniversary of the unrest.

Analysts say a government policy of transferring Han Chinese to Xinjiang to consolidate Beijing's authority has increased the proportion of Han in the region from five percent in the 1940s to more than 40 percent now.

Many Han Chinese have better education and qualifications, and crucially a better grasp of Mandarin than the Uighurs -- all of which gives them a better shot at the best jobs.

According to Dru Gladney, an expert on Uighurs at Pomona College in California, the government does have progressive job policies that strive to give ethnic minorities more opportunities in areas such as government service.

Earlier this year, the regional government also announced measures to try to spur employment in Xinjiang, with one of the clauses stipulating that all businesses and projects hire more ethnic minority workers.

But Uighurs say these rules are not always respected.

"Maybe with new awareness of the problems in Xinjiang, they'll try more to honour their constitution. But the reality on the ground is things haven't changed," said Gladney.

As a result, some Uighurs -- skilled and unskilled -- have headed east to try their luck in other, richer parts of China, in a move encouraged by the ruling Communist party, which hopes it will lead to more integration.

But Gladney notes: "What you find is all the Uighurs will stay in one dormitory, or one district of town, and I think that actually increases Uighur identity."

According to one restaurant owner in Urumqi, who refused to divulge his name, many Uighurs are now scared to move to other parts of the country.

"Look at what happened last year, Uighurs got killed," he said, in reference to a factory brawl in the southern province of Guangdong that saw two Uighur workers reportedly killed, sparking the July 5 protest.

Michael Dillon, a Britain-based expert on Xinjiang, points out that "older Uighurs are particularly worried about the number of young women who have been recruited into jobs in the hospitality and the entertainment industries".

The older generation fears the women might ultimately be enticed into prostitution, said Dillon, who visited Xinjiang a few months ago.

The government has poured money into the region in a bid to raise living standards and its economy has also boomed.

Earlier this year, Beijing announced it would send 10 billion yuan (1.5 billion dollars) in development aid to the region from 2011.

But Dillon said that unless the investment was targeted at narrowing the gap between Uighurs and Han, "it is not likely to be very effective".

Tursun says a lot of Uighurs just want to go abroad, particularly those whose language skills are not getting used in Urumqi.

But for many, even getting a passport is a long and tortuous process, she says wistfully.

AFP: Job discrimination riles China's Uighurs

 

[Guest]

Many Han Chinese have better education and qualifications, and crucially a better grasp of Mandarin than the Uighurs -- all of which gives them a better shot at the best jobs.

in your country, do those who received no education, have no qualifications and can not speak the offical language can get a better job than those who are well educated? if not, can that be count as "job discrimination" too.

"Look at what happened last year, Uighurs got killed," he said, in reference to a factory brawl in the southern province of Guangdong that saw two Uighur workers reportedly killed, sparking the July 5 protest.

i don't know what happend in US, but i know that atleast 4 minority ethics got kill every month in Australia, not because they raped a girl and fought the the girl's friends after they are identified.

if this is how you seek truth, sham on you.

 

[TruthSeeker]

if this is how you seek truth, sham on you.

Hey! the rebuttal you quoted was right there in the article I posted! So it was obviously telling at least some of both sides of the story. Yes, that is how I seek truth. Read everything. Try to keep an open mind. Listen to the opinions of others (like you). Try not to be xenophobic and make attacks based on the other person's nationality. Of course, since I am human like you, I don't ALWAYS succeed in finding the truth.

 

[DesiGuy]

self delete.

 

[DesiGuy]

do you care separatism in india? like jammu kashmir manipur assam nagaland?
seems you are really interest in break china into pieces

it's just a news. why drag India in it??? for trolling, no doubt.

anything that is against china, people will just not accept it on this forum.

 

[dingyibvs]

I'm not so sure this is an ethnic issue. Natives of the western provinces, Han or not, tend to have less education, less qualifications, and less mandarin-speaking abilities which generally lead to poorer job prospects. Sure some ethnic discrimination exist amongst the individuals, but I don't think it's anything systematic. It does the CCP and their policy of "integration"(i.e. assimilation) no good by intentionally keeping the minorities down.

 

[Honor]

Hey! the rebuttal you quoted was right there in the article I posted! So it was obviously telling at least some of both sides of the story. Yes, that is how I seek truth. Read everything. Try to keep an open mind. Listen to the opinions of others (like you). Try not to be xenophobic and make attacks based on the other person's nationality. Of course, since I am human like you, I don't ALWAYS succeed in finding the truth.

Fat American always get lost finding the truth! God bless America! Thats how they ended up invading Iraq for weapon of mass destruction.