While reports of unrest in Tibet frequently grab headlines around the world, little attention is given to what several human rights groups have dubbed China’s “other Tibet”. China’s frontier to Central Asia, the vast western region of Xinjiang has in recent years seen escalating ethnic tensions and the imposition of a heavy military presence. Xinjiang has long been an important crossroads of trade and culture. The region’s indigenous population consists of the Uighurs – Muslims who are ethnically, linguistically and culturally Turkic, and worlds apart from their Han rulers, the ethnicity which dominates the rest of China. This area is extensively used for resettlement of huge numbers of Han from the overpopulated east of China. The numbers of ethnic Han settlers in Xinjiang has risen from well under half a million in 1953 to 7.5 million by 2000, and is rising fast. According to the latest available figures, Han settlers make up around 42 per cent of Xinjiang’s total population of 18 million. This is causing many Uighurs to feel disillusioned, angry and afraid of losing their distinctive culture.
XINJIANG THE ‘OTHER TIBET’
While reports of unrest in Tibet frequently grab headlines around the world, little attention is given to what several human rights groups have dubbed China’s “other Tibet”.
