China’s policy of state terrorism in Xinjiang revealed

Hong Kong, Sept.7 : While the other countries of the world fight their own demons in the media glare, China is one place where political problems are successfully kept under wraps.A prime example of the Chinese expertise in maintaining secrecy is the blatant atrocities committed on ethnic Uyghur’s – Muslims of Turkish ancestry-in Xinjiang province, who have remained for many centuries in a state of conflict with the Han community, the main ethnic group in China.Chinese courts have been sending Uyghur Sunni Muslims to prison for unspecified terms on charges of terrorism and other civil crimes.The “crimes” listed out included – inciting communal hatred, harbouring criminals; bigamy; drug trafficking; destruction of evidence and belonging to a terrorist organisation etc.The jail terms extend up to 10 years in some cases. Courts of all counties and cities in the Kashgar region are regularly pressed into service to deliver sentences. Even though ethnicity was not declared, the names were distinctly Uyghur.In a particularly barbaric method of court procedures, on May, 28, 2014, 55 people, once again of Uyghur Muslim origin, were tried in a stadium in front of a crowd of several thousands. They were made to wear prominent orange coloured vests and stand in trucks with their heads bowed while being surrounded by military guards.The charges included terrorism, separatism and murder for which three were given death sentence, while the others got different degrees of prison terms.China is blatantly attempting to impose restrictions in the practice of the Muslim religion by the ethnic population. There have been instances where the government has issued a diktat to students and civil servants in Xinjiang to avoid fasting during Ramadan. This act has drawn international revulsion.