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1 1 (September 28, 2001)

handle is hein.crs/crsahho0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Order Code RS20476 Updated September 28, 2001 China's Xinjiang-Uighur Autonomous Region: Developments and U.S. Interests Kara Miriam Wortman Research Associate Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Trade Division Kerry Dumbaugh Specialist in Asian Affairs Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Trade Division Summary Since 1996, officials of the People's Republic of China (PRC) have seen an increasing security threat in the activities of minority nationalities in its heavily Muslim Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (XUAR), in China's far northwest. The PRC has been the target of bombings, sabotage, and other terrorist attacks, primarily thought to be committed by small groups of XUAR extremists (largely Uighurs). As a result, Beijing has increased police actions in the region, which many human rights organizations and Members of Congress allege have resulted in gross and increasing human rights violations. In the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States, U.S. policymakers are faced with balancing these human rights concerns with what now appear to be common Sino-U.S. interests in combating fundamentalist global terrorism. Background The Xinjiang-Uighur Autonomous Region is China's northwesternmost territory, making up one-sixth of the country's area. In addition to sharing its 3,350-mile border with Afghanistan, it also borders Mongolia, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Pakistan, and India, including the disputed territory of Kashmir. Uighurs (pronounced WEE-gurs), who are Turkic Muslims, comprise the dominant ethnic group in the region at 47% of the total population of 16.6 million. Since the 1950s, Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region Xinjiang Beijing Cldna 1000 0 1000 2000 Mles Lbry of Congress , Geography -d Map Diviio Februay 2000 Congressional Research Service + The Library of Congress CRS Report for Congress Received through the CRS Web