Xinjiang Uygurs: China boasts of its protection and support for cultures in white paper
- Document comes as Beijing faces a backlash from foreign governments for holding up to 1 million Muslims in re-education camps
- Government says it is committed to protecting citizens’ freedom of religious belief
China has released a policy white paper boasting of its protection of ethnic cultures in Xinjiang, and defying mounting criticism that it is undermining the religious and ethnic identity of Muslim minorities through mass internment and indoctrination in the far western region.
The document, titled “Cultural protection and development in Xinjiang”, was issued on Thursday by the State Council Information Office and comes as Beijing faces a rising backlash from foreign governments for holding up to 1 million Uygurs and other Muslim groups in a sprawling network of re-education camps.
In an unusually broad and coordinated move to step up diplomatic pressure, a group of 15 Western ambassadors in Beijing have signed a joint letter requesting a meeting with Xinjiang’s top official, Chen Quanguo, for an explanation of the crackdown, Reuters reported on Thursday.
Under growing international scrutiny, the Chinese government has in recent months turned from initial denial to an ardent propaganda drive, defending the facilities as “vocational training centres” where “trainees” learn job skills and live a “colourful life”.
However, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said this week that the internment camp programme was intended as a preventive measure so that “it will be impossible for terrorism to spread and take root”.