Top officials in emergency visit to Xinjiang after outbreaks of unrest
CPPCC chief, fellow Politburo member and security minister rush to restive region to press home need to clamp down on 'terrorist forces'
Two of the country's highest- ranking officials made an emergency visit to Xinjiang yesterday, after an outbreak of violence led to a curfew in the jade-mining hub of Hotan.
The arrival of Yu Zhengsheng, the No 4 member on the Communist Party's supreme Politburo Standing Committee, and Politburo member Meng Jianzhu, secretary of the Commission for Political and Legal Affairs of the Communist Party, in the far-western region's capital, Urumqi, was an indication that central authorities are taking seriously recent incidents of unrest.
Yu, who is chairman of the Chinese People's Consultative Conference and the most senior official in charge of Xinjiang affairs, was also accompanied by Public Security Minister Guo Shengkun .
President Xi Jinping convened a special meeting of the Standing Committee on Friday night, hours after a riot broke out in Hotan. The riot followed an incident in Lukqun township, Turpan, in which 35 people were killed, including 11 attackers.
Upon his arrival, Yu told regional officials to wage a "proactive battle" to clamp down on all "violent and terrorist forces in the region". Xinjiang is home to a large population of ethnic-Uygur Muslims and has a long history of separatist violence. Riots four years ago left some 200 dead.
"The deep-seated causes that affect social stability have not been solved," Yu said. "Protection of key areas, key institutes and key infrastructure must be strengthened."
Hotan has been under a curfew since Friday night.
A resident said shops were ordered to close. No one was allowed on streets after sunset and internet and 3G phone services were suspended.
The state-run said more than 100 people attacked "a number of people with weapons after gathering at local religious venues". Two residents said by phone they heard that a young woman had been raped but authorities mishandled the case, sparking anger and protests in local Uygur communities.
A nurse in a clinic in Moyu county, less than 10 kilometres away from Hotan, said she was afraid to leave the house.
"The riot came suddenly," she said. "Before that everyone lived in peace. Now everyone lives in terror. We are very confused. Nobody knows what happened and nobody knows when the curfew will end. The government did not give us any explanation."
