Results tagged “ethnictension”

Nine people were executed yesterday for their involvement in the Xinjiang riots earlier this summer. Among the nine, two were ethnically Han, and the other seven were of Uighur descent. The exiled World Uighur Congress denounced the executions as unfair and unjust, claiming that the government had denied the prisoners a final visit from their families. In addition, twenty more people were indicted in relation to eighteen deaths during the riots.

A Han Chinese man was sentenced to death months after the murder of two Uighyrs suspected of raping two Han Chinese factory workers in Shaoguan. In addition, nine other Han Chinese were sentenced to between five and eight years in prison for the murders. Since the attacks were the spark that erupted the racial riots in Xinijang this summer, we guess this is the government's attempt to smooth over ethnic tension in the new frontier. But in light of the many, many other ethnically charged rules and regulations in effect since the riots, we have our doubts that this is the right path for closure on the issue.

Looks like the saga of syringe attacks in Xinjiang is far from over. Police detained another 75 people after a number of new syringe attacks, just days after three Uighers were sentenced for previous attacks. The recent attacks have spread out of Urumqi and around Xinjiang, with reports of stabbing from Kashgar to Turpan. Worse, the deputy head of police in Urumqi said that two detainees admitted their aim was to "undermine ethnic unity in Xinjiang and to create ethnic hatred". We worry about the ramifications this will have for racial tensions that are already boiling in Xinjiang.

Rumors that the syringe attackers in Xinjiang were Uyghurs bent on giving AIDS to Hans sparked a thousands strong protest yesterday. Witnesses described chanting crowds marching with Chinese flags, shouts of "Wang Lequan (regional secretary of Xinjiang) step down!" and at least one Uyghur being beaten up by a crowd while paramilitary police officers watched, according to the New York Times. Officials were loath to discuss the protests, telling the Times "You guys should not be so eager competing for the news. Just wait one day until the official news comes out." Well, we guess that's what you get asking for a political opinion here.

It amazes us that China can somehow manage to realize our worst fears, even the most illogical ones. Needless to say, we cringed for about five minutes after reading a report from China Daily stating that fifteen people in Xinjiang were seized after attacking people with syringes. AAH! Members of nine different ethnic groups reported stabbing incidents to the police, which is a good sign, as it doesn't seem related to the ethnic violence that raged through Xinjiang last month. But the article is interestingly silent on the ethnicity of the syringe attackers, which can only make us more curious and more worried about how they went about detaining people. Luckily, none of the victims have been infected or poisoned so far, but just the thought of such a horrid experience leaves us with chills.

Over 200 people will be going on trial this week for their involvement in the Xinjiang riots, according to the Associated Press. The trials will take place in Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang and the city where most of the violence happened. The charges range from vandalizing public property to murder. Want to learn more about China's worst ethnic violence in decades? We've covered the Xinjiang riots from when they began to the conflicts of the second day to the final embers of the fourth day and into the various stories published afterwards.

• Protest at China TV tower [The Straits Times] "Demonstrators gathered outside a fire-gutted tower near the new China Central Television (CCTV) headquarters in Beijing on Tuesday, protesting against what they called forced eviction, state press said. About 30 residents accused the state-run television station of trying to get them to move from the area to make way for the massive and nearly completed construction project, Xinhua news agency said. After about an hour, police persuaded the protesters to put away their banners and leave, the report said. "
• China Backs Off Latest Rio Tinto Claims [WSJ] "Chinese officials distanced the government from allegations on a state-backed Web site that employees of mining giant Rio Tinto PLC had used years of "deceit" to obtain state secrets that cost China's steel industry more than $100 billion — spotlighting the murky and often confusing way China handles such secrecy cases. The allegations, published over the weekend, had quickly gained widespread attention, as they appeared to represent the government ratcheting up pressure over the case of four Rio Tinto employees, including an Australian citizen, who were detained last month by the Shanghai State Security Bureau on vague accusations of using bribery to obtain secrets that harmed China's national interests."
• Another suspect dies in Kunming police custody [GoKunming] "A man being held in detention in Kunming died in a hospital on Saturday with no clear cause of death, according to a Xinhua report. According to a police spokesperson speaking to reporters on Sunday, 43-year-old Wang Shukun (王树坤) had been held in the Guandu District Detention Center since July 19 before being checked into a hospital by police on August 6. After undergoing emergency procedures to save his life, Wang died early Saturday, the spokesperson said."

• China's Alibaba Adds Social Networking to E-commerce [PC World] "China's Alibaba Group has started mixing social-networking functions into its leading e-commerce platforms, a move it hopes will convince users to spend more time and money on Alibaba Web sites. Alibaba is crafting social-networking platforms specifically to complement two of its core operations. The beta version of a Web site with Facebook-style applications and a Twitter-style feed is being grafted onto Taobao.com."
• China, the world's factory--a photo tour [CNET Asia Blogs: The Tech Dynasty] "These images are from WethicA, a company that audits factories with an eye toward child labor, workers rights, health & safety, and wages. From the WethicA newsletter: "We are posting real untouched photos of factory working conditions from about one year ago. We have decided this summer to show you an important part of the job we do during audits by telling you why these pictures have been taken. Actually, an audit is much more investigative than ticking boxes off a questionaire. One has to walk in with an open mind ready to question everything in these situations and not only ask a list of predefined questions.""
• China's turning children against me: Kadeer [ABC News] "The children of exiled Uighur leader Rebiya Kadeer have gone on Chinese television criticising their mother. Two of Ms Kadeer's children and her brother were at first reported as having written letters blaming their mother for orchestrating recent violence in far western China. Now the two children, along with another son, have recorded interviews with Chinese television for a special program."