The
Chinese government has banned Muslims in the Xinjiang section from celebrating
Ramadan, which is a traditional holy month of fasting and spiritual reflection.
A spokesman
for the exiled World Uyghur Congress, which promotes democracy,
human rights and freedom for the indigenous Uyghur (Uighur) people, said
authorities supported Uighurs to eat free meals, and inspected homes to check
whether families were observing the fast.
Several
government agencies and schools posted the ban notices on their websites,
saying it was aimed at preventing the institutions from being used to promote
religion. Similar bans have been imposed in the past on fasting for Ramadan,
which began at sundown Saturday. But this year is unusually sensitive because
Xinjiang is under tight security following attacks that the government blames
on Muslim revolutionaries with foreign terrorist ties.
Aggressive
conflicts between Uighurs and ethnic Chinese has risen in recent years. In July
2009, conflicts between the Han Chinese and the Uighur erupted, killing nearly
200 people in Xinjiang's capital Urumqi.
China
accuses Uighur militants of waging a violent campaign for an independent state,
and Beijing is often accused of overstressing Uighur extremism to justify its
religious onslaught on the Muslim minority.
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