Xinjiang preserves multi ethnic and multi religious characteristics

The Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has been a multi-ethnic and multi-religious region since the ancient Silk Road times, and it will preserve these characteristics, according to Lio Guo Fang, vice chairman of the Xinjiang Academy of Social Sciences. Speaking to members of the foreign press visiting Xinjiang at the third Xinjiang Silk Road event, jointly organized by China Radio International (CRI), the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Fang said 56 ethnic groups are officially recognized by the government of the People's Republic of China, and members of 47 ethnic groups live and maintain their cultures in the Xinjiang Region. Stating that the population of the region is about 23 million, Fang said that Uygurs account for 43 percent of the population in the region with 10.7 million followed by the Han with 40 percent, Kazakh at around 8 percent with the remaining 9 percent consisting of other minorities.

The Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, located in northwest China, is the biggest administrative division in the country, spanning over 1.6 million kilometers. The region was the bridgehead for promoting trade ties with the neighboring countries of Central Asia and Europe during the time of the ancient Silk Road. The region is regaining its importance with a project called "One Road One Belt," which aims to reinvigorate the ancient Silk Road, and the region is again becoming a vital gateway to Central Asia.

Stressing that the local and central governments protect all minority rights in Xinjiang, Fang said that seven different minority languages are taught in primary and elementary schools in Xinjiang and that colleges use four ethnic languages.

The Xinjiang Academy of Social Sciences is the leading social sciences institution in the region with 200 personnel from 11 ethnic groups currently working in the institution.

Giving detailed information about the religious distribution of the population in the region, Nouri Mahmedi of the Religious Research Center said that Islam is the biggest religion in the region (53 percent) and that Muslims can freely pray in 23,900 mosques in Xinjiang. Officials from the academy also stressed that about 300 people from the region joined DAESH; thus, since 2014 they have intensified their efforts to fight against extremism, especially DAESH-linked organizations.