Why they care about those separatists

• Source: Global Times
• [02:09 July 05 2010]
• Comments

Today, July 5, is the first anniversary of the riots in China's far northwestern city of Urumqi, which claimed nearly 200 lives.

While residents of the capital of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region are trying to put behind the painful memories of losing their kith and kin and move on, the Western media are still airing their timely "concerns" over the region, with stories that highlight the heightened security, or atmosphere of tension and hostility.

Rebiya Kadeer, leader of World Uyghur Congress, who is believed to have masterminded the tragedy last year, again accused the Chinese government of oppressing the ethnic minority of Uyghurs, and called on the world to do more to save them.

US State Department spokesman Mark Toner, too, expressed concern, and urged China to be "more transparent" in handling judicial processes relating to the 2009 riots.

It has been a custom for some of the Western countries to pay attention to those separatists over the millions of people living in Xinjiang. These activists were often described as "dissidents" who have stood up against oppression and "totalitarianism," and were portrayed as poor fighters in exhile who needed their protection.

Actually, these very people instigated the riots and unleashed chaos in Urumqi last year. And, only with Xinjiang in chaos, could these separatists pillory the Chinese government for the purpose of getting more funds and support from the West, so as to fulfill their political ambition.

It is easy for the Western forces that support the separatists to pay lip service. Yet who really cares about Xinjiang? Not the US or the other foreign countries. Not the separatists living overseas. The people who care about Xinjiang are the Chinese people themselves, be they Uyghur, Han and of any other ethnic group.

Xinjiang, accounting for one-sixth of China's territory, is an integral part of the republic. Any wound inflicted on this body might not hurt others, but it will hurt the Chinese people. Without stability and development, China cannot go very much farther.

Chinese people know that they will all benefit from the prosperity and better life in Xinjiang. The prosperity cannot come from separatism, but closer communication, greater cultural cohesion and more focus on development