dogu-turkistan-sempozyumu

The Role of the International Community in East Turkestan / Prof Dru C. Gladneyhas been lost to Han influence in Turfan and that since they themselves are therepositories of the more unspoiled “Uighur” traditions, tourists should spendtheir time, and money, in Kashgar. This search for the so-called “real Uighur”confirms that the nationality statistics and tourism agencies have succeeded. There-creation of Uighur ethnicity has come full circle: the Chinese nation-state hasidentified a people who in the last 40 years have taken on that assigned identityas their own; in the process, those who have accepted this identity have sought todefine it and exploit it on their own terms. The Uyghur believe they have a 6,000year cultural and physical history in the region. Like the Han, who believe thatthey also have a 5-8000 year history, neither side is likely to let this internationallyinspired idea go away.The history of Chinese-Muslim relations in Xinjiang, as Millward’s (2007)book has documented, has been one of relative peace and quiet, broken byenormous social and political disruptions, which were fostered by both internaland external crises. The relative quiet of the last decade does not indicate that theon-going problems of the region have been resolved or the opposition dissolved.The opposition to Chinese rule in Xinjiang has not reached the level of Chechnyaor the Intifada, but similar to the Basque separatists of the ETA in Spain, orformer IRA in Ireland and England, it is one that may erupt in limited, violentmoments of terror and resistance. And just as these oppositional movements havenot been resolved in Europe, the Uighur problem in Xinjiang does not appearto be one that will readily go away. The admitted problem of Uighur terrorismand dissent, even in the Diaspora, is thus problematic for a government thatwants to encourage integration and development in a region where the majoritypopulation are not only ethnically different, but also devoutly Muslim. How doesa government integrate a strongly religious minority (be it Muslim, Tibetan,Christian, or Buddhist) into a Marxist-Capitalist system? China’s policy ofintolerance toward dissent and economic stimulus does not seem to have resolvedthis issue. As a responsible stakeholder, China should find ways to open dialoguewith representative Uighur individuals and groups to better cooperate in findingsolutions to this on-going problem. There has been much progress and a relativelypeaceful development of this important region. Surely a dialogue can be openedup in order to help insure a more prosperous and peaceful future, for both theUighur and Han alike.495