Larvatus Prodeo

Urumqi must be one of the most obscure cities of its size anywhere on Earth. Google Maps shows its location in the far north-western corner of China. It’s the capital of Xinjiang Province, whose indigenous population was mainly Muslim Uighurs. But over the past few decades, increasing numbers of Han Chinese have moved there, particularly to Urumqi, and these days Uighurs are a minority group in Urumqi.

Figuring out exactly what went on there over the past few days is rather difficult, but Wikipedia’s summary of the news reports suggests that the trouble initially started after a brawl at a workplace saw two Uighur workers killed by Han Chinese. A protest by Uighurs demanding further investigation of these killings was then subject to heavy-handed policing, which saw it turn into a riot. Further violence has apparently ensued with groups of Han Chinese committing revenge attacks.

Some useful context is provided by this piece at opendemocracy.net, which notes Uighur groups in China and elsewhere, and their – largely peaceful – attempts to achieve more autonomy and self-determination. This New York Times article also notes Chinese government policies towards the Uighurs, including a gradual erosion of the use of their language in the school system, and the fact that most of the economic spoils from growth seem to be going to Han Chinese.

While China remains a totalitarian state, it seems likely that minority rights will continue to be trampled on. But if and when the current political system changes, it will be interesting to see how China’s relationship with the ethnic minorities in its border provinces sort themselves out.