The PLA at Home and Abroad - Strategic Studies Institute - U.S. Army

When they did move in to reassert control, the
PAP acted, according to at least one foreign observer,
effectively, with discipline and professionalism. 95 PAP
troops used armored vehicles, water cannon, electric
batons, tear gas, riot shields, and live fire (both warning
shots and direct fire) to bring Uyghur and Han
rioters under control. 96 As in the case of the unrest in
Lhasa in 2008, the issue of coordination and respective
roles of the PAP and the PLA remain unclear. Most reports
strongly suggest that PAP units bore the responsibility
for restoring order. 97 Some reports, however,
do suggest that the PLA was deployed in response to
the events in Urumqi, with PLA units acting (as they
had in Lhasa) in a support capacity and perhaps being
used to secure key installations. 98 Clearly following
some of the lessons drawn from the experience of
dealing with the Lhasa riots and other mass incidents,
the authorities worked hard to manage the flow of information.
On the one hand, internet and cell phone
service were cut off in Urumqi, and problematic internet
sites (such as Youtube, Facebook, and Twitter)
were shut down all over the country in an attempt to
stifle unofficial sources of information. At the same
time, the authorities took the initiative to manage,
rather than simply suppress, news media coverage.
In addition to publishing news through the state-controlled
news media, the authorities also allowed foreign
journalists to report from Urumqi, while doing
their best to guide such foreign reporting into avenues
considered suitable by the government.
266