http://news.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/04/13/wchina13.xml&sSheet=/news/2005/04/13/ixworld.html
Terrorism 'used as excuse for China to crush Muslims' By Richard Spencer in Beijing (Filed: 13/04/2005) China was accused by human rights groups yesterday of a "crushing campaign of religious repression" against minority Muslims living in the country's west. Beijing is using terrorism as an excuse to "smother Islam" among the Uighur people of Xinjiang, its largest province, according to a report by Human Rights Watch and Human Rights in China. They used secret Communist Party documents to show how rules for religious observance are so vague that suspects can be arrested for almost any reason. Activities effectively banned include teaching children religion, even privately, singing traditional songs at school, marking religious festivals in state institutions and publishing anything about Islam that does not "uphold the Marxist point of view of religion". As a result almost half of those jailed without trial in the area's labour camps are there for religious reasons. Xinjiang is China's largest province, forcibly reunited with the rest of the country following the Communist takeover after breaking free of Beijing early last century. The authorities have fought opposition from the eight million Uighurs by encouraging migration by ethnic Han Chinese, as part of an economic development drive. Uighurs are now in a minority, with Urumqi, the biggest city, overwhelmingly Han. In Kashgar, on the Silk Road, the Han proportion may be more than a third and the traditional houses, mosques and bazaars are being "modernised" with concrete. The report said Beijing claims to face Islamists linked to al-Qa'eda, to "equate any expression of dissatisfaction with Beijing's policies with separatism". "At its most extreme peaceful activists practising their religion in ways that the party and government deem unacceptable are arrested, tortured and at times executed," the report added. Several Uighurs are being held at Guantanamo Bay, but US officials think it unlikely that Xinjiang faces a major Islamist terror threat. ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Give underprivileged students the materials they need to learn. Bring education to life by funding a specific classroom project. http://us.click.yahoo.com/FHLuJD/_WnJAA/cUmLAA/TySplB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: [email protected] Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. OSINT, as a part of The Intelligence Network, is making it available without profit to OSINT YahooGroups members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
