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| 27 Die in Rioting in Ethnically Divided Western China | |
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| HONG KONG — At least 27 people died in rioting in far western China on Wednesday, when protesters attacked a police station and government offices and the police fired on the crowd, state media said. It was the worst spasm of violence for years in Xinjiang, a region beset with tensions between Uighurs, an overwhelmingly Muslim ethnic minority, and China’s Han majority. | HONG KONG — At least 27 people died in rioting in far western China on Wednesday, when protesters attacked a police station and government offices and the police fired on the crowd, state media said. It was the worst spasm of violence for years in Xinjiang, a region beset with tensions between Uighurs, an overwhelmingly Muslim ethnic minority, and China’s Han majority. |
| The confrontation broke out in the morning in Lukqun, a township in Turpan Prefecture, the state-run news agency, Xinhua, reported, citing unnamed officials. | The confrontation broke out in the morning in Lukqun, a township in Turpan Prefecture, the state-run news agency, Xinhua, reported, citing unnamed officials. |
| “Knife-wielding mobs attacked the township’s police stations, the local government building and a construction site, stabbing at people and setting fire to police cars,” the English-language report said. In the initial outburst of bloodshed, seventeen people were killed, including nine police officers and security guards, and the police then fatally shot 10 rioters, it said. | “Knife-wielding mobs attacked the township’s police stations, the local government building and a construction site, stabbing at people and setting fire to police cars,” the English-language report said. In the initial outburst of bloodshed, seventeen people were killed, including nine police officers and security guards, and the police then fatally shot 10 rioters, it said. |
| The Xinhua report gave no explanation of what triggered the confrontation; nor did it give the ethnic background or other details of the rioters. Uighur people predominate in Turpan. | The Xinhua report gave no explanation of what triggered the confrontation; nor did it give the ethnic background or other details of the rioters. Uighur people predominate in Turpan. |
| In the past, Uighur residents have often given accounts of unrest sharply at odds with those given by Chinese government officials. Attempts to contact residents, and a spokesperson for the Xinjiang regional government, were unsuccessful. | In the past, Uighur residents have often given accounts of unrest sharply at odds with those given by Chinese government officials. Attempts to contact residents, and a spokesperson for the Xinjiang regional government, were unsuccessful. |
| “It’s inconvenient to talk,” said an official in the propaganda office of Shanshan County, which includes Lukqun Township in its jurisdiction. “Leaders are all out, it’s inconvenient to take interviews.” | “It’s inconvenient to talk,” said an official in the propaganda office of Shanshan County, which includes Lukqun Township in its jurisdiction. “Leaders are all out, it’s inconvenient to take interviews.” |
| Many members of the Uighur minority, a Turkic-speaking group, resent the growing presence in Xinjiang of Han Chinese people, whom they say get the better jobs and land. Government restrictions on religion have also become a growing source of tensions with Uighurs, who have embraced more conservative currents of Sunni Islam. | Many members of the Uighur minority, a Turkic-speaking group, resent the growing presence in Xinjiang of Han Chinese people, whom they say get the better jobs and land. Government restrictions on religion have also become a growing source of tensions with Uighurs, who have embraced more conservative currents of Sunni Islam. |
| The government has blamed past violence in Xinjiang on groups it accuses of using terror to seek independence for the region, including the East Turkestan Islamic Movement. But advocates of Uighur self-determination and some foreign scholars say the discontent has local causes and is not orchestrated from abroad. | The government has blamed past violence in Xinjiang on groups it accuses of using terror to seek independence for the region, including the East Turkestan Islamic Movement. But advocates of Uighur self-determination and some foreign scholars say the discontent has local causes and is not orchestrated from abroad. |
| In July 2009, Urumqi, the regional capital of Xinjiang, was beset by the worst ethnic violence in China in many years, when Uighurs attacked Han Chinese after the police broke up a protest by Uighurs. At least 197 people were killed, most of them Han Chinese, according to the Chinese government. Crowds of Han Chinese residents then marched through Uighur neighborhoods, demanding vengeance and attacking residents with rocks and cleavers. | In July 2009, Urumqi, the regional capital of Xinjiang, was beset by the worst ethnic violence in China in many years, when Uighurs attacked Han Chinese after the police broke up a protest by Uighurs. At least 197 people were killed, most of them Han Chinese, according to the Chinese government. Crowds of Han Chinese residents then marched through Uighur neighborhoods, demanding vengeance and attacking residents with rocks and cleavers. |
| In April, at least 21 people died in fighting in Xinjiang between security forces and a group of what a government spokesman called “gangsters.” In March, two courts convicted and sentenced 20 people accused of militant separatism in the region. | In April, at least 21 people died in fighting in Xinjiang between security forces and a group of what a government spokesman called “gangsters.” In March, two courts convicted and sentenced 20 people accused of militant separatism in the region. |
| Uighurs once formed the vast majority of residents in Xinjiang, which neighbors on Central Asia and came under the control of Chinese Communist forces in 1949. In recent decades, the number of Han Chinese residents has grown, aided by migration. Uighurs now make up 46 percent of Xinjiang’s civilian population of 22 million, and Han Chinese account for 40 percent, according to government estimates. | Uighurs once formed the vast majority of residents in Xinjiang, which neighbors on Central Asia and came under the control of Chinese Communist forces in 1949. In recent decades, the number of Han Chinese residents has grown, aided by migration. Uighurs now make up 46 percent of Xinjiang’s civilian population of 22 million, and Han Chinese account for 40 percent, according to government estimates. |
Patrick Zuo and Mia Li contributed research from Beijing. | Patrick Zuo and Mia Li contributed research from Beijing. |