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Xinjiang-Uighurs
Religious Freedom for Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang
According to official estimates, China had some 20 million Muslims, 35,000 registered places of Islamic worship, and over 45,000 imams across China in 2002.(138) The Chinese government takes some measures to show consideration for the religious beliefs and associated cultural practices of China's Muslims. Most notably, the government permits and sometimes subsidizes Muslims to makethe Hajj to Mecca. According to official Chinese figures, 5,000 Chinese Muslims made the Hajj in 1998. In the subsequent 5 years, however, independent reports estimated that far fewer Chinese Muslims made the Hajj. The China Islamic Association reports that 2,000 Chinese Muslims took part in the Hajj with official delegations in 2001.(139) Other Muslims may not
have been counted in official statistics if they made the Hajj through
neighboring countries such as Pakistan. Cost and passport issuance
restrictions often deter Chinese Muslims who wish to make the trip to
Mecca. Unofficial sources say that most Chinese Muslims who make the Hajj
are from the Hui, another one of China's minority groups, rather than
Uighurs. Unofficial accounts also suggest that Muslims who are allowed to
make the Hajj and who are subsidized for it generally must be loyal
government officials, active or retired.
Despite permitting some Muslims to make the Hajj, the
Chinese government continues to limit the religious freedom of Xinjiang's
Muslim Uighurs, who constitute nearly half of China's Muslim population.
Anti-separatism and anti-terrorism crackdowns persist, contributing to the
harsh repression of Uighur religious activities in the region. These
campaigns extend to stanching "religious extremism" and "illegal religious
activities." While the government justifies its crackdowns on religious
activities under the rubric of fighting "splittism" or "terrorism," many
observers believe that the Chinese government is using the global war
against terrorism as a pretext to suppress non-violent Uighur religious
activity in Xinjiang.
In 2002, Party and government officials in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region emphasized more stringent supervision of religious affairs. In Yili Prefecture, authorities ordered increased scrutiny of Muslim religious ceremonies such as weddings, funerals,
circumcisions, and house moving rituals.(140)
Xinjiang authorities launched a campaign to dissuade Muslims from wearing
religious attire such as veils and discouraged religious marriage
ceremonies. Government officials also continued to restrict mosque
building in Xinjiang.
The government continues
to strictly regulate religious education and participation in religious
activities by young people, preventing parents from exercising full
freedom over the religious aspects of their childrens' upbringing.
Authorities prohibit Uighurs under the age of 18 from entering mosques in
Xinjiang. Signs reportedly posted at the entrances of most mosques
announce the ban. University students found worshipping in mosques or
participating in other religious activities face expulsion from their
schools. Officials also limit participation in religious activities by
teachers and professors. The government restricts religious teaching and
periodically censors sermons given by imams. Authorities closely monitor
the activities of imams, and local branches of the state-controlled
Islamic Association of China must approve the appointment of imams.
Government authorities continued to conduct mandatory political study
sessions for imams and religious personnel during 2003.
While government policy limits the religious
activities of Xinjiang's Uighur population, Hui Muslims throughout China
enjoy greater religious freedom than Uighur Muslims. Mosques in areas with
sizable Hui populations reportedly lack the signs common in Uighur areas
prohibiting those under the age of 18 from entering mosques. Furthermore,
reports indicate considerable mosque construction and renovation in
predominantly Hui areas. Observers concede that the Hui appear to enjoy a
greater degree of religious freedom than their Uighur Muslim
coreligionists, to whom the Chinese government often attributes separatist
and terrorist sentiments and actions.
Footnotes
138: Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, U.S. Department of State, "International Religious Freedom Report - 2002, China (Includes Hong Kong and Macau)," 7 October 2002, (8 October 2002).
139: Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, U.S. Department of State, "Country Report on Human Rights Practices - 2002, China (Includes Hong Kong and Macau)," 31 March 2003, (1 April 2003).
140: Human Rights Watch World Report 2003: China and Tibet, January 2003, http://www.hrw.org/wr2k3/asia4.html (15 January
2003). |
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