China: Xi Jinping calls for “sinicization” of Islam

Chinese President, Xi Jinping, has asked officials to step up efforts to uphold the principle that Islam in China must be Chinese in orientation and it should adapt to the socialist society being pursued by the ruling Communist Party of China, Xi was quoted as saying by the state-run Xinhua news agency.

Xi visited the volatile Xinjiang region, where the Chinese security forces for the last several years have made efforts to control protests by Uygur Muslims over settlements from Han Chinese from outside the province.

In the past few years, the president has been advocating the “sinicization” of Islam which broadly means bringing it in tune with the policies of the ruling Communist Party.

Human rights organizations, EU, UN officials and many foreign governments accused China of genocide and mass incarcerations of Uygur Muslims in camps, but Beijing downplayed and denied these accusations.

Recently, UN Human Rights Council chief Michelle Bachelet visited Xinjiang after a long drawn-out negotiation process with Beijing to look into China’s crackdown over a million Uygur Muslims of different ages.

At the end of her visit, Bachelet said she raised questions and concerns China’s measures, their broad application, and their impact on the rights of Uygurs and other predominantly Muslim minorities.

It is worth-mentioning that Xinjiang has also experienced a record surge in arrests, trials and prison sentences, but the global response to the repression against Muslims has been relatively muted in an indication of China’s clout.