China says it has arrested 13,000 ‘terrorists’ in Xinjiang as it seeks to justify internment camps for Muslims
- But white paper does not say how many people have been detained in camps, a number UN estimates at 1 million or more
- Analyst says it is a ‘clear attempt to respond to the growing global outcry’
China has arrested nearly 13,000 “terrorists” in far western Xinjiang since 2014, the government said in a white paper released on Monday, the latest bid to counter criticism of its treatment of Muslim minorities.
Beijing has drawn international condemnation for its network of mass internment camps in Xinjiang, where rights experts estimate 1 million or more Uygurs and other Muslim minorities have been held for political indoctrination.
In response, the Chinese government last year launched a propaganda offensive to reframe and justify the camps, which it insists are “vocational training centres” that are necessary to counter “religious extremism” and ensure stability.
The white paper released by the State Council, China’s cabinet, is the latest effort to advance that narrative, with a focus on how its “hard-hitting” approach has helped thwart terror attacks.
“Since 2014, Xinjiang has destroyed 1,588 terrorist groups, arrested 12,995 terrorists, seized 2,052 explosive devices, investigated and punished 30,645 people for 4,858 illegal religious activities and confiscated 345,229 copies of illegal religious materials,” it said.
But it did not state how many people had been detained in the camps, which it said were for eradicating the influence of “terrorism and extremism” on people who carried out minor crimes or offences.