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China, Uyghur Congress contradict each other on religious freedom in East Turkestan as Ramadan starts
Beijing says never before had people been so free to practice Islam · Uyghur group claims Chinese government places restrictions on observance of Islamic holy month
East Turkestan, or Xinjiang Uyghur, is an autonomous province in the north-west of China. According to the 2000 census, some 40% of its population is Han Chinese, and the remaining 60% belong to other peoples, such as the Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz and Oirat. Tensions between Uyghurs and Han Chinese are recurrent.
Chinese regulations in East Turkestan have led to "the effective criminalization of Islam practiced outside state-controlled mosques," the World Uyghur Congress argues in a statement coinciding with the start of Ramadan. WUC is an international organization mainly consisting of exiled Uyghurs who live in several Western countries.
According to WUC, "in 2015 and 2016, Uyghurs were restricted in their ability to fast during Ramadan, forced to sell alcohol and cigarettes from their shops, banned from using traditional Muslim names, and prohibited from all religious activity outside state-sanctioned mosques," among other limitations.
The Congress further says that authorities reward citizens who denounce people engaging in activities against the law.
Moreover, according to an Agence France Presse information, several government departments in East Turkestan have posted orders on their websites that "[Communist] Party members, cadres, civil servants, students and minors must not fast for Ramadan and must not take part in religious activities." The notices also say that "food and drink businesses must not close."
More religious freedom than ever, Chinese government says
The Chinese government, however, has just released its Freedom of religious belief in Xinjiang report, which argues that "today, the freedom of religious belief in Xinjiang cannot be matched by that in any other historical period." "Believers' normal religious needs are effectively met, the report goes on, as "the proliferation and spread of religious extremism is being effectively contained."
This is one a sore point for the World Uighur Congress. According to the group, the Chinese government uses the fight against religious extremism as a pretext to suppress cultural and political rights of the Uyghur people, whether they have to do with Islam or not.
Beijing denies it is being violating Uyghurs' rights to their language and culture, but it does admit that any political activity regarded to be seeking the independence of East Turkestan is illegal.