Xinjiang/China: Ethnic Violence Erupts

Thousands of ethnic Uighurs in China’s Western province of Xinjiang have protested in the capital city Urumqi over alleged mistreatment of Uighur workers by Han Chinese. Violence erupted after army and riot police moved in, and state media say 140 people were killed. However Uighur spokespeople abroad say army troops used machine guns, and the protest would have remained peaceful if the ruling regime had left it alone.

Protesters in China’s western province of Xinjiang have clashed with the army and police, after thousands of ethnic Uighurs rallied in the streets of the capital city Urumqi.

The protesters were calling for a full investigation into the alleged bashing of Uighur factory workers by Han Chinese in Guangdong Province last month.

State media reported that 140 people died and more than 800 were injured, while Chinese bloggers say up to 100 public buses were destroyed.

The official propaganda response echoed the response to March 2008 riots in Lhasa, the capital of Tibet: the protesters were accused of „beating, smashing, robbing and burning“ in a protest masterminded by forces overseas, in this case US-based Uighur advocate Rebiya Kadeer.

But overseas Uighur representatives say the protest only became violent when it was brutally suppressed by authorities.

Videos posted on the Internet, mostly filmed from buildings above, show thousands of people moving quickly down main streets, blocking traffic and making a lot of noise.

Passers-by appear to spontaneously join the protest. They seem non-violent, although in one video a solitary man appears to be damaging a building away from the crowd.

Videos and photos apparently taken later on show military and riot police moving in in formation, along with army vehicles.

Then at some point the protest turned violent, with photos after dark showing flames raging from burned-out vehicles and hordes of angry protesters overturning cars.

Dilxat Raxit, spokesman for the Germany-based World Uighur Congress, cited eyewitness reports that the army used machine guns and then enforced a curfew specifically against Uighurs.

[Dilxat Raxit, World Uighur Congress]:
“The Chinese government despached 50 Liberation Army cars and fired machine guns in the urban areas. At present there has been a public notice in Urumqi that Uighurs are forbidden from going outside, and anyone going outside will be arrested. At the same time, Communist Party militants are scouring the streets for Uighur people. According to our information, hundreds of people have been formally arrested and dozens of people were killed.”

The protests were sparked by a conflict at the Xuri Industry toy factory in Shaoguan, Guangdong Province, where Han Chinese workers are understood to have beaten several Uighur workers to death after a rumour that the Uighurs had raped Han women.

But Dilxat Raxit said somebody had masterminded the factory beatings, and police stood by and watched.

[Dilxat Raxit, World Uighur Congress]:
„In the event at the toy factory, the employees were all using the same sticks, somebody had passed them out. Also, while they were beating Uighurs, the Chinese police officers did not try to stop them.“

Ethnic tensions in the region will continue to simmer. Uighurs say high levels of Han Chinese immigration has diluted their culture and caused high unemployment, while the Chinese regime accuses Uighur activists of separatist activities.

(NTDTV)