China locks down western province after ethnic riots kill 140

You —

Riot police on streets of Urumqi after fighting between Uighur Muslims and Han Chinese leaves over 800 injured


At least 140 people have been killed and 828 injured after the worst violence in decades swept through the capital of China's restive region of Xinjiang last night, authorities said today.


Hundreds were under arrest and thousands of riot officers and armed paramilitary police were keeping tight control of southern Urumqi, following vicious clashes between Muslim Uighurs and Han Chinese. But witnesses reported that protests had spread to a second city, Kashgar, in the north-western region.


Read more @ The Guardian


I don't know enough to decide if it was ethnic tensions or religious tensions.


Forum
General

You — Tue, 7 Jul 2009 - 00:10

Unrest spreads in western China


Unrest in China's volatile western region of Xinjiang spread to a second city on Monday, with police breaking up fresh protests in Kashgar.


Chinese state media reported that police dispersed more than 200 "rioters" at the city's main mosque.


At least 156 people died and more than 800 were hurt on Sunday when protests in the city of Urumqi turned violent.


Beijing says ethnic Muslim Uighurs went on the rampage, but one exiled Uighur leader says police fired on students...


Read more @ BBC News


Ya'qub — Tue, 7 Jul 2009 - 22:07

[quote=wednesday]


I never really understand chinese, so I wouldn't know and it's surprising that I don't I have any chinese friends. Infact I don't think there are ANY chinese people on our course. (Oh there is one but he's from canada and ever so sweet)


I think they all like the arts subjects if not leisure and tourism :P[/quote]


There are loads of Chinese students in most unis, yet they tend to stay together and not mix with the wider community.


Yep, EVEN less than Muslims do!!


Ya'qub — Wed, 8 Jul 2009 - 23:19

[quote=wednesday]The same with Afro-Carribeans.[/quote]


Not so sure. I have tons of friends. Guess it differs around the country. Then again, more black people are native british, whereas (in unis anyway) chinese people tend to be here to study, before going back home.


You — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 - 04:38

Uyghur Muslims – Turmoil in China


One very important note before continuing, the Chinese government has apparently restricted internet access, so the most readily available information is from mainstream media outlets. This post is simply meant to provide a recap of the situation as it is being reported. [See also, Chinese media coverage of the incident]


The situation in China finally hit the CNN frontpage briefly before getting drowned out by a story about Michael Jackson’s skin color, a ’sexting’ teen, cops buying a doughnut shop, and Obama girls causing a fashion stir.


Thankfully, the beacon of balance and fairness in America – Fox News – had a small line about, “China Vows Executions for Rioters Behind Killings” (not much information there), buried underneath a story letting us know that it has not yet been clarified whether Michael Jackson will get a butter statue memorial or not (see “Jacko Butter Debate Churns“).


To find out what is going on requires some digging, and we hope to bring a recap to the events unfurling in China, and specifically how the Uyghur Muslim population there is affected.


Before continuing on to the present protests and incidents, it is important to quickly look at some of the history of the Uyghurs in China...


Read more @ Muslim Matters


Also form the same site, something from last year - crackdowns during ramadan where the hijab and beard were banned, eateries forced to stay open, schools forced to serve meals etc, barring government officials from fasting...


You — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 - 21:59

(Just to note: a video analysis of the conflict)


Turkey attacks China 'genocide'


Turkey's prime minister has described ethnic violence in China's Xinjiang region as "a kind of genocide".


"There is no other way of commenting on this event," Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.


He spoke after a night-time curfew was reimposed in Xinjiang's capital, Urumqi, where Muslim Uighurs and Han Chinese clashed last Sunday.


The death toll from the violence there has now risen from 156 to 184, China's state-run Xinhua news agency reports. More than 1,000 people were injured.


Turkey, a predominantly Muslim country, shares linguistic and religious links with the Uighurs in China's western-most region...


Read more @ BBC News


You — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 - 00:15

Urumqi officials back down on mosque closures



  • Police break up small protest after Friday prayers

  • DNA tests begin on victims of ethnic violence


Uighur men leave the White mosque after Friday prayers. Photograph: Eugene Hoshiko/AP


Riot police broke up a small group of Uighur protesters outside a mosque in the troubled capital of Xinjiang after officials relented on an earlier decision to cancel Friday prayers.


Earlier, hundreds of Uighur men had gathered at the gates of mosques in Urumqi despite notices saying services were suspended. Officials cited "safety" reasons after brutal inter-ethnic attacks which began on Sunday.


...


The attempt to close the mosques appeared to be prompted by the authorities' anxieties about large crowds. At the Yang Hang mosque, Uighurs applauded and up to 400 worshippers carrying prayer mats flooded in as the doors were unlocked. A notice cancelling the day's service disappeared from the front gate...


Read more @ The Guardian


You — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 - 19:33

Most of Xinjiang dead 'Chinese'


Some three-quarters of the victims of the violence in China's western Xinjiang region were ethnic Han Chinese, the official death toll shows.


Of 184 people known to have died, 137 were Han Chinese, 46 were from the indigenous Uighur community and one was an ethnic Hui, local officials said.


Beijing flooded the regional capital Urumqi with security forces to stem the violence which erupted last Sunday.


Correspondents say some Uighurs believe their own death toll was much higher.


"I've heard that more than 100 Uighurs have died but nobody wants to talk about it in public," one Uighur man in Urumqi who did not want to give his name told the Associated Press news agency...


Read more @ BBC News


Ya'qub — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 - 19:47

[quote=You](Just to note: a video analysis of the conflict)


Turkey attacks China 'genocide'


Turkey's prime minister has described ethnic violence in China's Xinjiang region as "a kind of genocide".


"There is no other way of commenting on this event," Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.


He spoke after a night-time curfew was reimposed in Xinjiang's capital, Urumqi, where Muslim Uighurs and Han Chinese clashed last Sunday.


The death toll from the violence there has now risen from 156 to 184, China's state-run Xinhua news agency reports. More than 1,000 people were injured.


Turkey, a predominantly Muslim country, shares linguistic and religious links with the Uighurs in China's western-most region...


Read more @ BBC News[/quote]


What does he call Turkey's involvement in Armenia?