A rare first-hand report of the plight of the Uighurs who live in China’s far-west region of Xinjiang. The majority are Muslims who identify ethnically and culturally with Central Asian nations.
Foreign Policy magazine reports that the Uighurs “are experiencing intensified state assault on their religious freedom.” This year during Ramadan, official notices on government websites mandate that Uighurs who are party members, civil servants, teachers, and students forgo fasting (a requirement for observant Muslims).
The report continues, “The government’s yearlong “strike hard” campaign, launched in May 2014, which included the censoring of prayers, the closing of Islamic schools, and the banning of certain religious dress, has threatened virtually all forms of local religious and cultural expressions and triggered an identity crisis among Uighurs.”
