Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

Trump-Backed Tax-Cut and Spending Bill Passes US Senate

3 hours ago

Israeli Officials to Hold Ceasefire Talks in Washington Amid Military Escalation in Gaza

5 hours ago

Trump Escalates Feud With Musk, Threatens Tesla, SpaceX Support

5 hours ago

Musk Vows to Punish Lawmakers Who Back Trump’s Spending Bill

21 hours ago

Fresno Man Sentenced to Nearly 6 Years for $4.2 Million Tech Startup Fraud

21 hours ago

Suspect Identified in Ambush Shooting That Killed 2 Idaho Firefighters

23 hours ago

Will Valadao Spoil Trump’s Plan for July 4th ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ Signing?

24 hours ago

Shaver Lake and Reedley 4th of July Shows Are Wednesday. Who Else Is Celebrating?

1 day ago
China Says Camps for Muslims Lead Them to ‘Modern Life’
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 7 years ago on
October 16, 2018

Share

BEIJING — China on Tuesday characterized its mass internment of Muslims as a push to bring into the “modern, civilized” world a destitute people who are easily led astray — a depiction that analysts said bore troubling colonial overtones.

“It’s become a general trend for them to expect and pursue a modern, civilized life.” — Xinjiang Gov. Shohrat Zakir
The report is the ruling Communist Party’s latest effort to defend its extrajudicial detention of Central Asian Muslim minorities against mounting criticism.
China’s resistance to Western pressure over the camps highlights its growing confidence under President Xi Jinping, who has offered Beijing’s authoritarian system as a model for other countries.
About 1 million Uighurs, Kazakhs and other minorities have been arbitrarily detained in mass internment camps in China’s far west Xinjiang region, according to estimates by a U.N. panel. Former detainees say they were forced to disavow their Islamic beliefs in the camps, while children of detainees are being placed in dozens of orphanages across the region.
The report by the official Xinhua News Agency indicated that key to the party’s vision in Xinjiang is the assimilation of the indigenous Central Asian ethnic minorities into Han Chinese society — and in turn, a “modern” lifestyle.
Xinjiang Gov. Shohrat Zakir said the authorities were providing people with lessons on Mandarin, Chinese history and laws. Such training would steer them away from extremism and onto the path toward a “modern life” in which they would feel “confident about the future,” he said.
“It’s become a general trend for them to expect and pursue a modern, civilized life,” Zakir said, referring to the trainees. He said the measures are part of a broader policy to build a “foundation for completely solving the deeply-rooted problems” in the region.

Viewing the Country’s Ethnic Minorities as Backward

China has long viewed the country’s ethnic minorities as backward, said James Leibold an expert on Chinese ethnic polices at Melbourne’s La Trobe University.
Leibold described Beijing’s perspective on minorities as: “They’re superstitious, they’re deviant, they’re potentially dangerous. The role of the party-state is to bring them into the light of civilization, to transform them.”
Despite growing alarm from the U.S. and the United Nations, China has maintained that Xinjiang’s vast dragnet of police surveillance is necessary for countering latent extremism and preserving stability.
The Turkic-speaking Uighurs (pronounced WEE-gurs) have long resented restrictions placed on their religious practices. They say they experience widespread discrimination in jobs and access to passports.
In the Xinhua report, Zakir said authorities provide free vocational training in skills geared toward manufacturing, food and service industries. Zakir said “trainees” are paid a basic income during the training, in which free food and accommodations are provided.
The report appeared aimed at disputing accounts provided by former detainees, who have said they were held in political indoctrination camps where they were forced to denounce Islam and profess loyalty to the party.

Report Did Not Say if Attendance Was Mandatory

Ethnic Uighurs and Kazakhs have told The Associated Press that ostensibly innocuous acts such as praying regularly, viewing a foreign website or taking phone calls from relatives abroad could land one in a camp.

Zakir said the training centers were for people “who are influenced by terrorism and extremism, and those suspected of minor criminal offenses” who could be exempted from criminal punishment.
Zakir said the training centers were for people “who are influenced by terrorism and extremism, and those suspected of minor criminal offenses” who could be exempted from criminal punishment.
Zakir did not say whether such individuals were ever formally charged with any crime or provided a chance to defend themselves against the allegations. The report also did not say if attendance was mandatory, though former detainees have said they were forcibly held in centers policed by armed guards.
Maya Wang, senior China researcher at Human Rights Watch, said the system deprived detainees of basic legal protections such as access to lawyers.
The authorities’ attempts to justify the camps “illustrate what the ‘rule of law’ in China means — that the party bends it to its will and uses it as a weapon against perceived political enemies,” Wang said in an email.
Zakir did not say how many people were in such courses, but said some would be able to complete their courses this year.
Zakir seemed to try to counter reports of poor living conditions within the camps, saying that “trainees” were immersed in athletic and cultural activities. The centers’ cafeterias provide “nutritious, free diets,” and dormitories are fully equipped with TVs, air conditioning and showers, he said.

Being Locked in a Room With Other Internees

Omir Bekali, a Xinjiang-born Kazakh citizen, said he was kept in a cell with 40 people inside a heavily guarded facility.

“No amount of spin can hide the fact that the Chinese authorities are undertaking a campaign of systematic repression.” — Amnesty International
Bekali said he was kept in a locked room with eight other internees. They shared beds and a wretched toilet. Baths were rare.
Before meals, they were told to chant “Thank the party! Thank the motherland!” During daily mandatory classes, they were told that their people were backward before being “liberated” by the party in the 1950s.
The idea that one’s beliefs can be transformed through indoctrination dates back to the Mao Zedong era, when self-criticisms and public humiliation were routinely employed to stir up ideological fervor.
The program’s philosophies can be traced even further back to the late imperial era, when Xinjiang’s “natives” were seen as requiring education in the Confucian way, according to Michael Clarke, a Xinjiang expert at Australian National University.
Amnesty International called the Xinhua report an insult to detainees and the families of people who have gone missing in the crackdown.
“No amount of spin can hide the fact that the Chinese authorities are undertaking a campaign of systematic repression,” the human rights group said.

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Clovis Police Seek Public’s Help in Finding Missing 82-Year-Old Woman

DON'T MISS

Fresno Woman Killed in Head-On Collision, CHP Investigating

DON'T MISS

Musk Vows to Punish Lawmakers Who Back Trump’s Spending Bill

DON'T MISS

Fresno Man Sentenced to Nearly 6 Years for $4.2 Million Tech Startup Fraud

DON'T MISS

Bryan Kohberger Pleads Guilty in Murders of Four Idaho Students, ABC News Reports

DON'T MISS

Wildfire Near Lake Madera Country Estates Burns 12 Acres, Now 100% Contained

DON'T MISS

Fresno County CHP Arrest Two in Interstate 5 Drug, Gun, and Counterfeit Money Bust

DON'T MISS

California Seizes Over 600,000 Pounds of Illegal Fireworks. Newsom Calls for Safe Celebrations

DON'T MISS

Where Trade Talks Stand With Major US Partners Ahead of Tariffs-Hike Deadline

DON'T MISS

Labor Icon Huerta Breaks Ground on Fresno Park Bearing Her Name

UP NEXT

Suspect Identified in Ambush Shooting That Killed 2 Idaho Firefighters

UP NEXT

935 People Killed in Israeli Strikes on Iran, Official Says

UP NEXT

US Revokes Visas for Bob Vylan After Music Duo’s Glastonbury Chants

UP NEXT

Israel Acknowledges Palestinian Civilians Harmed at Gaza Aid Sites, Says ‘Lessons Learned’

UP NEXT

Suspect Identified in Ambush Shooting That Killed 2 Idaho Firefighters

UP NEXT

Israel Faces Genocide Accusations Amid Gaza Food Aid Killings

UP NEXT

Iran-Linked Hackers May Target US Firms and Critical Infrastructure, US Government Warns

UP NEXT

Israel Strikes Pound Gaza, Killing 60, Ahead of US Talks on Ceasefire

UP NEXT

US to Restart Trade Negotiations With Canada Immediately, White House Says

UP NEXT

Trump to Sign Order Related to Syria Sanctions Easing, CBS News Reports

US Senate Strikes AI Regulation Ban From Trump Megabill

1 hour ago

Fresno Police, CHP Crack Down on Impaired Driving for July 4th

1 hour ago

Despite Last-Minute Changes, Senate Bill Deals Big Blow to Renewable Energy

2 hours ago

Zohran Mamdani Officially Wins Democratic Primary for New York City Mayor

2 hours ago

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Amaury Fernandez

2 hours ago

CA Rolls Back Its Landmark Environmental Law to Speed Housing Construction

3 hours ago

Visalia Police Investigate Deadly Shooting Near Bethlehem Center

3 hours ago

Trump-Backed Tax-Cut and Spending Bill Passes US Senate

3 hours ago

Homeland Security Secretary Noem Says CNN May Be Prosecuted Over Report on Migration App

4 hours ago

Musk Promises a New Political Party if the GOP Bill Passes

4 hours ago

Sex Abuse Scandal Forces Fresno’s Catholic Diocese to Declare Bankruptcy

The Catholic Diocese of Fresno filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Tuesday, according to a news release from the religious organization. The fil...

7 minutes ago

7 minutes ago

Sex Abuse Scandal Forces Fresno’s Catholic Diocese to Declare Bankruptcy

42 minutes ago

California Republicans Send Message to Trump: Deport Criminals, Not Our Vital Workers

Fresno police arrested a suspect on suspicion of DUI Tuesday, July 1, 2025, morning after they showed up intoxicated to work, caused a disturbance, and struck another vehicle before arriving. (GV Wire/Anthony W. Haddad)
45 minutes ago

Fresno Police Arrest Intoxicated Employee Following Morning Disturbance

The U.S Capitol and an office are reflected in a window inside the Hart Senate Office Building as Republican lawmakers struggle to pass U.S. President Donald Trump's sweeping spending and tax bill, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 1, 2025. (Reuters/Nathan Howard)
1 hour ago

US Senate Strikes AI Regulation Ban From Trump Megabill

1 hour ago

Fresno Police, CHP Crack Down on Impaired Driving for July 4th

U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) speaks during a press conference after the Senate passes U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping spending and tax bill, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 1, 2025. (Reuters/Annabelle Gordon)
2 hours ago

Despite Last-Minute Changes, Senate Bill Deals Big Blow to Renewable Energy

Zohran Mamdani addresses supporters on primary night, in New York, June 24, 2025. Mamdani, the democratic socialist whose blend of populist ideas and personal magnetism catapulted his upstart candidacy, has won the Democratic primary for mayor of New York City, according to The Associated Press. (Shuran Huang/The New York Times)
2 hours ago

Zohran Mamdani Officially Wins Democratic Primary for New York City Mayor

Amaury Fernandez is Valley Crime Stoppers' Most Wanted Person of the Day for July 1, 2025. (Valley Crimes Stoppers)
2 hours ago

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Amaury Fernandez

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend