Tag: Xinjiang

City In Xinjiang China Bans Islamic Attire In Public Places

A city in China’s mainly Muslim Xinjiang region has banned people with large beards or Islamic clothing from travelling on public buses, state media said, prompting outrage from an overseas rights group.

Authorities in Karamay banned people wearing hijabs, niqabs, burqas or clothing with the Islamic star and crescent symbol from taking local buses, the Karamay Daily reported.

The ban also covered “large beards”, the paper said, adding: “Those who do not co-operate with inspection teams will be handled by police.”

Xinjiang, a resource-rich region that abuts central Asia, is the homeland of China’s mostly Muslim Uighur minority and has been hit by a wave of clashes between locals and security forces that have killed hundreds in the past year.

China has blamed several deadly attacks on civilians outside the region in recent months on “terrorists” seeking independence for the region.

Rights groups say restrictions on Uighurs’ religious and cultural freedoms have stoked tensions.

In July China banned students and government staff from Ramadan fasting, while officials have also tried to encourage locals in Xinjiang not to wear Islamic veils.

The Karamay restrictions are “a typical discriminatory measure … which add to an increasing confrontation between Uighurs and Beijing”, Dilxat Raxit, a spokesman for the exiled World Uyghur Congress (WUC), told Agence France-Presse.

Chinese state media said on Sunday that nearly 100 people including 59 “terrorists” had been killed in an attack in Xinjiang the previous week.

The report came days after the government-appointed head of the largest mosque in China, in one of the region’s oldest cities, Kashgar, was killed after leading morning prayers.

China announced a year-long terrorism crackdown following a deadly bombing attack in Xinjiang’s capital, Urumqi, in May, and hundreds of people have been arrested on accusations of terrorism. Security on public transport has also been tightened.

The Karamay ban would apply for the duration of a sports competition ending on 20 August, the report said.

Authorities in Urumqi in July banned bus passengers from carrying a range of items including cigarette lighters and yogurt, state media said.

Source: www.theguardian.com

January 22, 2015
Chinese Nationals Using Malaysia As Transit Point To Join Islamic State

PUTRAJAYA — More than 300 Chinese nationals have used Malaysia as a transit point on their way to join the Islamic State (IS) militant group in Syria and Iraq, Home Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi revealed today.

They had moved on to a third country from Malaysia prior to entering Syria and Iraq, he said, adding that this was disclosed to him by China’s Vice Minister of Public Security Meng Hongwei at a meeting at his office here today.

Ahmad Zahid said Kuala Lumpur and Beijing viewed seriously this security threat and were committed to curbing it in a more comprehensive manner.

“Although there exists an arrangement between Malaysia and China to combat terrorism through counter-terrorism measures, this problem is serious.

“This is because ties exist at the international level between terrorists in China and those in other countries in the Southeast Asian region,” he told reporters after Meng had called on him.

Asked about the possibility of these Chinese nationals having ties with Malaysians, Ahmad Zahid said no information had been received on that.

On another matter, the minister said there had been no proposal or discussion yet on the issuing of visas free to tourists from other countries besides China.

When announcing measures to strengthen Malaysia’s economic resilience yesterday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak had said visas would be issued free to tourists, including from China.

Ahmad Zahid said tourists from China visiting Malaysia still had to apply for a visa but they were exempted from having to pay the fee of 80 yuan (RM46.45).

He said the Cabinet decided that an official announcement on the free-visa measure would be made after all rules and conditions had been refined by the Malaysian Immigration Department.

“We will make an official announcement at the Malaysian embassy and consulates general in China,” he said.

Source: www.themalaymailonline.com

January 22, 2015
China Punishes Xinjiang Muslim Officials For Openly Practicing Faith

BEIJING – China has reprimanded 15 Xinjiang officials for violations that include adhering to religious faith, state media said on Tuesday, amid a crackdown on what the government calls illegal religious activities in the unruly western region.

Xinjiang, home to the Muslim Uighur people who speak a Turkic language, has been beset for years by violence that the Chinese government blames on Islamist militants and separatists.

One official in the southern city of Kashgar, where a state-backed imam was killed last month, had “worshipped openly”, the official Xinhua news agency said, behavior which violated rules that state workers not be religious.

“The punishment of expulsion from public office was handed to surnamed Mai who violated the clear regulation that state workers must not have religious faith,” Xinhua said, citing the city’s Uighur mayor, Ainiwaer Tuerxun. Mai had “remained devout and incorrigible, and had a poor attitude,” the report added.

Tensions are running high in Xinjiang, after officials told Muslims to eschew religious customs during the fasting month of Ramadan, which rights groups saw as an bid to repress Uighurs.

Another official was punished, according to Xinhua, for having “ambiguous understanding and attitudes, sluggish action, and ineffective implementation toward counter-terrorism operations”.

Punishments for violations, which included spreading information that was harmful to ethnic unity, ranged from expulsion from government positions to stern warnings.

All of the officials were from Kashgar, an old Silk Road city with a largely Uighur population, though the abbreviated surnames given by Xinhua made their ethnicities unclear.

Hundreds have died in violence in Xinjiang in the past year and a half, prompting a sweeping crackdown by authorities.

Exiled Uighur groups and human rights activists say the government’s repressive policies in Xinjiang, including controls on Islam, have provoked unrest, a claim Beijing denies.

State media reported last week that authorities in Xinjiang’s capital Urumqi closed 27 places used for “underground” preaching and detained 44 illegal imams as part of an operation to “rescue” 82 children from religious schools known as madrassas.

China punishes the study of Islam outside the confines of tightly controlled state mosques and children are prohibited from attending madrassas, prompting many parents who wish to provide a religious education to use underground schools. REUTERS

Source: http://www.todayonline.com/world/china-punishes-xinjiang-official-openly-practicing-faith

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August 19, 2014
Xinjiang City Bans Beards, Hijab and Islamic Clothing on Buses

A city in China’s mainly Muslim Xinjiang region has banned people with large beards or Islamic clothing from travelling on public buses, state media said, prompting outrage from an overseas rights group on Wednesday.

Authorities in Karamay banned people wearing hijabs, niqabs, burkas, or clothing with the Islamic star and crescent symbol from taking local buses, the Karamay Daily reported.

The ban also covers “large beards”, the paper said, adding: “Those who do not cooperate with inspection teams will be handled by police.”

Xinjiang, a resource rich region which abuts central Asia, is the homeland of China’s mostly Muslim Uighur minority and has been hit by a wave of clashes between locals and security forces which have killed hundreds in the past year.

China has blamed several deadly attacks on civilians outside the region in recent months on “terrorists” seeking independence for the region.

Rights groups say restrictions on Uighurs’ religious and cultural freedoms have stoked tensions.

China last month enforced a ban on students and government staff from Ramadan fasting, while officials have also tried to encourage locals in Xinjiang not to wear Islamic veils.

The Karamay restrictions are “a typical discriminatory measure…which add to an increasing confrontation between Uighurs and Beijing,” Dilxat Raxit, a spokesman for the exiled World Uyghur Congress (WUC), said in a statement to AFP.

Chinese state media said Sunday that nearly 100 people including 59 “terrorists” had been killed in an attack in Xinjiang last week.

The report came days after the government-appointed head of the largest mosque in China, in one of the region’s oldest cities, Kashgar, was killed after leading morning prayers.

China announced a year-long terrorism crackdown following a deadly bombing attack in Xinjiang’s capital Urumqi in May, and hundreds of alleged terrorists have been arrested.

Security on public transport has also been tightened.

The Karamay ban applies during a sports competition ending on August 20 the report said.

Authorities in Urumqi last month banned bus passengers from carrying a range of items including cigarette lighters and yogurt, state media said.

Source: https://sg.news.yahoo.com/china-city-bans-people-large-beards-islamic-clothing-054638641.html

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August 7, 2014