The Uyghur question: Chinese politics in Xinjiang and international answers
Author: Emir Zukić
Abstract
The People’s Republic of China is the most populous state in the world. Different ethnic groups live there. Some of them have good relations with the government in Beijing, while others are facing various problems. This paper will concentrate on Uyghur people who live in the western part of China, an area called Xinjiang. To better understand the ties between China and the Uyghur people, it is important to know basic facts about Xinjiang and the people who live there. It is also important to know why China spends so much effort to have a successful influence over that area. The second part of the paper explains methods that China uses for controlling people in the region of Xinjiang, from video surveillance to detention camps. This paper also explains China’s foreign policy regarding the Uyghur people and its ties with Turkey and the United States of America since many Uyghurs live in Turkey and the USA, where they lead campaigns and protests against China’s politics in the Xinjiang region.
Keywords: China, Islamophobia, Uyghur, genocide, minority rights, foreign policy
VPI BH RESEARCH INTERNSHIP paper, Foreign Policy Initiative BH, 2021.
Mentor: Lejla Ramić-Mesihović, PhD
English version PDF* The Uyghur question: Chinese politics in Xinjiang and international answers