URUMQI: Envoys from 14 countries, including Brazil, Iran, Indonesia, Pakistan, Ecuador and Senegal, have lauded the religious freedom enjoyed by ethnic minority groups and rural development in northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
The diplomats visited Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region from April 24 to 28 at the invitation of the Chinese Foreign Ministry.
Consuls general of 14 countries, stationed in different cities across China, visited the regional capital city of Urumqi, as well as Kashgar, Turpan and other locations in Xinjiang to experience first-hand social and economic development of the region.
They said that Xinjiang’s achievements are remarkable, and that people of all ethnic groups live in harmony and happiness. They noted that the various lies fabricated by certain Western media are completely inconsistent with the reality of Xinjiang.
“To root out terrorism, it is crucial to have a comprehensive plan for a region’s development and help people improve their lives,” said Agha Hunain Abbas Khan, Pakistani acting consul general in Chengdu, after visiting an exhibition on Xinjiang’s counterterrorism and deradicalization work.
“And China has made tremendous strides,” he added.
The envoys also visited the old town in the city of Kashgar and experienced the tourism boom in the run-up to the May Day holiday. Zaw Linn Oo, consul general of Myanmar in Chongqing, hailed Kashgar as a “land of hope” that is attractive to both local and distant visitors.
“A country needs social stability and economic development, and both are well-reflected in Kashgar,” he said.
Mehmet Mert Tokman, Turkish consul general in Chengdu, paid a visit to the region years ago. During this visit, he said that the land has a rich heritage and has undergone tremendous development and change, which can be seen particularly in the region’s incredible infrastructure construction achievements.
Giving high praise to the local government’s efforts to guarantee people’s freedom of religious belief, Ben Perkasa Drajat, Indonesian consul general in Guangzhou, said that Muslims in Xinjiang are free to go to the mosque to pray, after visiting the Eidgah Mosque in Kashgar and the Xinjiang Islamic Institute. “The news from the Western media that the Chinese government doesn’t allow Muslims to do religious activities is not true.”
As the country with the world’s largest Muslim population, Indonesia resolutely opposes external forces that manipulate the Xinjiang issue, interfere in China’s internal affairs and attempt to split China, the Indonesian envoy said.
The reality of Xinjiang is completely different from the biased reports of the Western media, he said. He noted that he hopes the two countries can continue to promote cooperation and encourage relevant individuals from Indonesia to visit Xinjiang.
Speaking to Xinhua, Judyth Muthoni Nsababera, Ugandan consul general in Guangzhou, said that she would not blindly believe the lies about Xinjiang that have been fabricated by Western media.
It is important to come and see the region and feel it in person, and China has the right to choose its own path, she concluded.
