Xinjiang terrorist cases must be dealt with ‘harshly and quickly’, says China’s top judge

Authorities must crack down "harshly and quickly" on cases involving terrorist attacks, national security and social stability in Xinjiang , the mainland's top judge has said, in comments likely to further worry rights groups and exiles.

Hundreds of people have been killed in the western region in the past two years, most in violence between the Muslim Uygur people who call Xinjiang home and the ethnic majority Han Chinese. The government has also blamed attacks in other parts of the mainland, including Beijing, on Islamist separatist militants from Xinjiang.

Zhou Qiang, the head of the Supreme People's Court, told a meeting on legal assistance to Xinjiang on Thursday that courts there would get help in handling cases to ensure long-lasting stability, Xinhua reported.

"We must increase the level of guidance for trials and guide Xinjiang courts to harshly and quickly hear terror crime cases like those which threaten national security, damage ethnic unity and affect social stability," Zhou said.

Cases involving race and religion must also be handled appropriately, he added.

Dozens of people have been sentenced to death in Xinjiang in the past year or so, over participation in terror attacks. Zhou's remarks will fuel the concerns of rights groups and exiles about lack of due process in the handling of such trials, which are often completed in a single day and may feature several defendants at once.