Zee News, 5 July 2011

Beijing: China on Tuesday deployed huge number of riot police to avoid any untoward incident in Xinjiang province on the second anniversary of the ethnic riots that claimed the lives of 200 people.

The streets of Urumqi, the capital of Muslim Uyghur majority Xinjiang province were calm with heavy presence of forces, reports said today.

“The general situation in Xinjiang is stable. But we should be alert to separatist activities,” Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hong Lei told reporters here.

After the July 5, 2009 riots between Uyghurs and Chinese Han settles, China brought about a host of economic and administrative reforms.

These included removal of the hard-line provincial chief of the ruling Communist Party, whose polices like insistence on Uyghurs to learn Chinese reported to have lead to the tensions.

Besides, it also stepped up investments amounting to several billion dollars. China also initiated steps at Xinjiang borders, shared with Pakistan Occupied Kashmir along with the help of the Pakistan army.

Blaming the separatist forces Hong said, “You can say society in Xinjiang is stable and economy is focusing on development and all groups are living in harmony.”

“A new Xinjiang is being built with prosperity. We will stick to regional autonomy as well as solidarity and common prosperity of all groups and fully implant the strategic goal of stabilising it by enriching the people,” he added.

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