China targets Utsuls of Hainan, Huis after crackdown on Uyghur Muslims: Report

While China faces increased international scrutiny over alleged human rights violations of Uyghur Muslims in the Xinjiang province, reports suggest that Beijing has expanded the scope of the crackdown to other ethnic minorities in different regions. According to a South China Morning Post report, Beijing has increased surveillance on the Utsuls of Hainan island, almost 12,000 kilometres from Xinjiang.

The Chinese Community Party (CCP) reportedly wants to tighten restrictions on the minority Muslim community of around 10,000 people by imposing a ban on their choice of attire. The local government announced a ban on wearing hijab in schools, triggering protests from the small community. SCMP report claims that a video circulating on Chinese social media showed girls wearing hijab and reading from textbooks outside a primary school.

"The official line is that no ethnic minority can wear traditional garments on school grounds but other ethnic minorities [in Sanya] don't wear traditional garments in their daily life so it makes no difference to them but to us, the hijab is an integral part of our culture, if we take it off it's like stripping off our clothes," a Utsul community worker was quoted as saying by South China Morning Post.

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In an apparent attempt to strip ethnic minorities of their identity, China has also been reportedly imposing restrictions on religious and “Arabic” architecture in Hui-dominated areas. Huis are mostly Chinese speaking community that follows Islam. They are considered to be the largest Muslim minority group in China with over 20 million population.

China's view of its minorities

A US-based Uyghur activist had said that the Chinese government has zero-tolerance for people who appear and behave differently. Nury Turkel, an American attorney and human rights advocate, told The Jerusalem Post in an interview that the Chinese Communist Party is now using the term “transformation” to make them forego their unique culture and traditions.

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(With ANI inputs | Image: AP)