China's anti-terrorism tactics should not be seen as targeting Uygurs, says ‘Eastern Nato’
- Head of Central Asian eight-nation cooperative defends China’s terrorism response as ‘big and rational’
- Shanghai Cooperation Organisation will continue to ‘take the root out’ of the terrorist
The head of the “Eastern Nato” has commented on Beijing’s anti-terrorism tactics in Xinjiang autonomous region, saying terrorism cannot be defined by “nationalities, geographical adherence or religion”.
Rashid Alimov, secretary general of the China-Russia led Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), said: “We don’t divide terrorists in terms of their nationalities, their geographical adherence or religion. Because terrorism does not have any of that.
"It does not matter what terrorists claim to do or the highest purpose they claim to serve to justify terrorism. Because every terrorist's goal is to kill. It's number one goal is to kill peaceful people."
Alimov, a former foreign minister of Tajikistan – one of eight member countries of SCO – was responding to global criticism of China’s forceful, systematic detention and enforced political education of up to one million ethnic Uygurs and other Muslims.
Xinjiang camps: China takes its defence of ‘re-education centres’ overseas with Pakistan meeting
China has called these camps “vocational training centres” to “educate and transform” people influenced by extremism.
