As old as China may be, the Taklimakan is infinitely older. The great desert of Xinjiang , which covers nearly one-fifth of the country's landmass, does not easily yield historical perspective, yet what archaeologists and anthropologists have scraped from it cannot be said to weigh in favour of its current masters. The earliest known inhabitants bore no resemblance to Chinese, physically or culturally. Until the post-1949 mass migration policies from the interior began, neither did its modern-day inhabitants. Never mind communism; Confucianism is an obscure concept in these ancient lands.
That has not stopped the central leadership from pursuing its claim to Xinjiang as an inalienable part of China, of course. Ever since the People's Liberation Army went into Urumqi in 1949, it has, like its neighbour Tibet, been subject to a massive Sinification campaign. The purpose has been geostrategic: thanks to the Taklimakan, Xinjiang is the mother of all buffer zones between China and central Asia.
But until now, it has been seen as a purely defensive tool. That seems to be changing with China's growing influence on the international stage. According to the China Daily on Friday, Beijing is planning a big development push in the region to reopen the ancient Silk Road. It is collaborating with neighbouring Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan to promote trade in goods and services, especially tourism, throughout the region.
The Silk Road, actually a network of roads that ran from the ancient capital of Xian to Rome, was once China's main trading link with the world. Between the 7th and 10th centuries, this link helped the Tang dynasty to establish China as the world's greatest civilisation.
Yes, the world is a different place today. Re-establishing the Silk Road - whatever that entails - is not about to make Chengdu and Chongqing, let alone Urumqi and Kashgar , international trade entrepots. So why is Beijing pushing this idea?
Because it can, is the easiest answer. China has a tighter grip on the Muslim-dominated region than it has had in thousands of years. The global post-September-11 era has allowed the State Security Bureau to crush the East Turkestan Liberation Front as a rallying force for the majority Uygur population. A massive, ongoing influx of ethnic Chinese settlers will eventually put them in the minority, anyway. And the hearts that cannot be turned by the tide of inevitability are being wooed by investment. Despite the tension evident throughout the land, the chances of Beijing losing control here seem very remote.
