Syed Ali Nawaz Gilani
Due to their vested interest, the Western media seems keen in ignoring facts and falsely accusing China’s poverty and anti-terrorism policies in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region so as to contain China and on the other hand trying to sabotage its growing social & economic cooperation with the world especially Islamic world. I am wondering if the readers surprisingly not aware with facts and figures and not having first hand accounts.
I’m traveling to China and specially Xinjiang since 1993 and an eye witness to the growing socio economic developments while attending Urumqi’s International Trade fairs and Kashgar’s BRI conferences apart from interacting with various peoples from different walks of life during last more then 2 decads. I feel to pen down few lines about Xinjiang-China.
China’s Western Xinjiang Region is known for the world’s fifth largest cotton growing region, and now that the Corona pandemic has begun, it has become increasingly regular to use cloth and paper instead of plastic due to environmental hazards, so China is not only beating the world in garments but on the other hand it is also supplying raw materials to the world for number of manufacturing items.
Apart from other parts of China, only Xinjiang is seven times bigger than Britain, three times bigger than France and ten times bigger than Australia and New Zealand. It is the fifth largest cotton producing region in the world. China has invested more than 2.3 trillion dollars in the development & strengthening the economy of Xinjiang over a period of time and is connecting it to the world through CPEC. The western media has started propaganda regarding the Uygur Muslims in Xinjiang that China is taking forced labor from the Uygur Muslims under harsh environment. European countries are now looking for justifications to boycott Chinese cotton using Uygur Muslims as an excuse for the action. Uygur Muslims have lived here for centuries and have been living within the Chinese system. The fact remains that more than half a million people from various ethnic minority groups in Xinjiang are engaged in plucking cotton on a scale far greater than previously thought. The Xinjiang region produces cotton more than 20% of the world and 84% of China.
The Chinese government has invited Muslim scholars, rulers and leaders of major religious political parties to come and observe Xinjiang in person, but since the world is now dominated by the western media, the whole world is looking at Xinjiang from the West’s point of view. Now China after regular visits of SCO’s member countries diplomats apart from Western countries also plans to take a delegation of experts, religious scholars and journalists from the Islamic world to Xinjiang to see and learn about the issue on their own.
China currently has excellent relations with the Islamic world. On one hand agreements are being made with Iran and Turkey whereas on the other hand Pakistan is connected to the world through CPEC. Chinese efforts are underway to reduce tension within the Islamic world and as a gesture of goodwill, Chinese Foreign Minister Mr. Wang Ji recently visited the Middle East where he held talks with officials from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Iraq and Kurdish region of Northern Iraq that is why China’s plans have brought Turkey and the northern Kurds closer together.
That is why the western world has intensified its unilateral propaganda against China, justifying the Chinese authorities continued surveillance of Uygur Muslims. There have been allegations of coercion against Muslims but Chinese officials have repeatedly denied the allegations. The United States has banned several high ranking Chinese officials in Xinjiang and shelter deviant Uygur Muslims leaders in the United States. On the other hand the United States had invaded the Islamic world – Iraq and caused devastation in Afghanistan where millions of Muslims had been massacred with their homes, mosques and madrassas bombed.
The US has threatens to ban cotton buyers from buying cotton in Xinjiang. They accuse China for forced labor and keep threatening to ban cotton companies. However the way China is investing in Asia and the Middle East will pave the way for its plans to be successful and to bring the Islamic world close to China by connecting them through economic corridors so as to negate the propaganda being made against China.
(The writer is a senior media consultant and Secretary General, Pakistan- China Friendship Association Khyber Pakthunkhwa Province – Pakistan. His email is [email protected])