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Dalai Lama concerned over Xinjiang unrest

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The Dalai Lama attends celebrations of his 74th birthday in New Delhi on 6 July 2009. The Dalai Lama has expressed concern over ethnic clashes in the restive Xinjiang that has left at least 156 people dead and over 1,000 injured.File photo/Reuters/Adnan Abidi/India

The Dalai Lama expressed concern over ethnic clashes in the restive Xinjiang that has left at least 156 people dead and over 1,000 injured.

He asked China to show restraint in dealing with the unrest in the region’s worst ethnic violence in decades.

“I am deeply saddened and concerned with the worsening situation in East Turkestan (Xinjiang), especially with the tragic loss of lives,” the Dalai Lama said in a statement.

“I earnestly urge the Chinese authorities to exercise restraint in dealing with the situation in a spirit of understanding and far-sightedness.”

A massive factory fight between Han Chinese and Uighur workers at a toy factory on 26 June in Shaoguan City, Guangdong Province in southern China, triggered the violence.

Uighurs demanded an investigation into the death of two ethnic Uighurs who died in the factory fight with Han Chinese workers.

Since the protests started on Sunday, there have been brutal Uighur attacks on Han and Han attacks on Uighur in Urumqi, capital of the northwestern region of Xinjiang.

Officials say most of 156 people killed were Han Chinese. Uighur groups say many more have died, claiming majority of the dead were Uighurs. More than 1,000 people have been injured and around 1,500 people were arrested.

Internet connections and text messaging services have been cut in Urumqi to stop the unrest from spreading to other areas. Reports say that protests have already spread to Kashgar city and other areas in the region.

President Hu Jintao cut short his visit to the G8 summit in Italy, returning home early to deal with the crisis.

The authorities have accused exiled World Uighur Congress leader Rebiya Kadeer for orchestrating the outbreak of violence. But she has denied the claims and in turn accused security forces of killing demonstrators in a brutal crackdown on peaceful protests.

The protests were reminiscent of last year’s unrest in Tibet. Beginning 10 March last year, Tibetans across the Tibetan plateau staged protests against what they called the repressive Chinese rule. China cracked down on the protesters with force, which left around 220 Tibetans dead and 1,300 injured. Over 5,600 were arrested, 290 sentenced and more than 1,000 people have disappeared, according to exile Tibetans.

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