China's Far West provinces (inc. Tibet)

[davidbfpo]

A reflective BBC report from Kunming, where in march 2014 a knife-wielding group of Uighurs attacked the central railway station, which left 29 people dead and more than 100 others wounded:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-28305109

Not much sign of the state response being POP centric. As one observer asks:

How do you, within a country of 1.4bn people, accommodate a minority community of 10 million people?

[davidbfpo]

The latest outbreak of violence in part of Xinjiang on Monday is not fully explained, partly as it was in Yarkand (in Chinese, Shache) county in Kashgar prefecture, a town far from non-Chinese gaze. Some reports have suggested hundreds were involved, with heavy casualties amongst the attackers.

The BBC has a report, but it is sketchy. It starts with:

Dozens of people have been killed or injured in violence in China's Xinjiang region on Monday, state media say.

Link:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-28539762

Radio Free Asia reports:

The head of the largest mosque in China who has been highly critical of violence by ethnic minority Muslim Uyghurs in the troubled Xinjiang region has been stabbed to death, according to witnesses and local officials.

Link:http://www.rfa.org/english/news/uygh...14221118.html?

[davidbfpo]

Via Twitter a very short clip of the latest attack in Hotan, captured by an Indian journalist based in Beijing:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLih...=youtube_gdata

First time I can recall footage of the violence.

[davidbfpo]

A commentary, even if there is no access to the scene and very little public information:

It was only on Sunday that the official Xinhua News Agency released a casualty count, saying a terrorist gang killed 37 people, who were mostly members of China's ethnic Han majority, with knives. Police gunned down 59 of the assailants, said to be led by a man with close ties to an overseas terror group. With a total death toll of 96, it appeared to be the most serious single instance of bloodshed since riots broke out in July 2009 in the regional capital of Urumqi that left nearly 200 dead. Yet, details remained scant for an incident of such proportions

Link:http://www.bigstory.ap.org/article/c...nce-tense-west

[davidbfpo]

The three men handed death sentences were those arrested in Shadian before the attack took place. They were convicted of organising and leading a terrorist group and murder. At least 21 people have been executed since June for alleged involvement in Xinjiang-related terrorist attacks and other "violent crimes".

Link:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worl...-to-death.html

[davidbfpo]

A rare attempt to present information and reach a conclusion on the external aspects of the Uighur resistance and violence in China:https://news.vice.com/article/are-mi...-islamic-state

[davidbfpo]

An Australian TV documentary, it is rare for such first-hand visual reporting in such a sensitive region:http://www.abc.net.au/foreign/content/2014/s4097689.htm

There's also a transcript for the twenty-nine minute film. At the start is some footage of attacks, including that in Beijing. The surveillance, apparently by local officials, is 24/7 and overt. Roads into the capital city have airport-style security checks for car travellers and armed police every present.