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Uighurs say China making region a
"time bomb"
Fri Sep 30, 3:49 AM ET
AFP/File Photo: Two Muslim Uighur boys walk past a
statue of Mao Zedong on Renmin Square in...
BEIJING, (AFP) - A worldwide group of exiled Uighur
Muslims criticised China over what it called
oppression and exploitation in the Xinjiang region,
and warned the region was being turned into a "time
bomb."
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The statement by the World Uighur Congress (WUC) came
on the eve of Saturday's 50th anniversary of the
Communist Party's rule over Xinjiang, which had
previously been an independent nation known as East
Turkestan.
It also came just days after China's top law
enforcement official ordered a strengthened campaign
to wipe out "terrorism, separatism and religious
extremism" in the region.
"The policies of political oppression, cultural
assimilation, economic exploitation, ecological
destruction, racial discrimination have gradually
turned East Turkestan into a time bomb," the WUC said.
"As a result, severe anti-Chinese sentiment is
intensified throughout East Turkestan," it said.
The statement also widely diverged from China's
interpretation of the historical background of the
region and the circumstances surrounding the
establishment of Xinjiang.
It said the late Chinese revolutionary Mao Zedong
estalished Xinjiang in 1955 after earlier promising
the people of East Turkestan self determination and
full independence.
"China's founder Mao Zedong died three decades ago,
but China's strategic, political and economic
objectives in East Turkestan have remained unchanged,"
the WUC said.
"The present Chinese leaders are continuing the same
policy to transform East Turkestan completely into a
Chinese colony, culturally assimilate the Uighur
people, and economically exploit their natural
resources."
Beijing views Xinjiang as an invaluable asset because
of its crucial strategic location near Central Asia
and its large oil and gas reserves. Over the last
decade a huge influx of Han Chinese have immigrated
into the region.
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