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Ghulja incident

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This article is about the 1997 Ghulja incident. For the Yining incident which led to the abolition of the East Turkestan Republic, see Abolition of the East Turkestan Republic.

Ghulja Incident
Part of the Xinjiang conflict
DateFebruary 3, 1997; 27 years ago (1997-02-03)
February 3–5, 1997
Location
Yining, Xinjiang, China
Caused by
  • Ethnic tensions
  • USSR Collapse Shockwave
GoalsMore Autonomy
MethodsProtests, rioting
Resulted inCrowd dispersed by police[1]
Parties
Casualties
Death(s)
  • 10 including a police officer (official reports)
[2]
Injuries198
Arrested1,600+ (dissident claims)
Ghulja is the capital of Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture

The Ghulja, Gulja,[3][4] or Yining incident (Chinese: 伊寧事件, Yīníng Shìjiàn) was the culmination of the Ghulja protests of 1997, a series of demonstrations[5] in the city of Yining—known as Ghulja in Uyghur—in the Xinjiang autonomous region of China.

Background

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Further information: Xinjiang conflict and Terrorism in China

The region of Xinjiang in China has been subject to armed clashes and terrorist attacks throughout the 1990s by separatist militants particularly the Eastern Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM).[6] These include a string of bombings in Urumqi and Kuqa in 1992, with attacks escalating in 1995.[7]

In 1996, the Chinese government initiated a "Strike Hard" campaign to crack down on suspected separatist activity.[8] The meshrep practice became a target of the "Strike Hard" campaign.[9]

Incident

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At around 9:00 am on February 5, 1997, demonstrations occurred during which the a crowd had marched shouting "God is great" and "independence for Xinjiang".[10] [11]

According to a local police official, the crowd initially numbered in the dozens, but quickly swelled in size.[12] A video of the incident taken at the time reportedly showed individuals chanting similar slogans as well as burning their identification documents.[10]

At noon, the demonstrations escalated as the crowd, numbering at about 1,000,[1] began to riot, attacking police and local residents, as well as burning shops and vehicles.[13][1][14]

The crowd was reportedly dispersed by police using clubs, water cannon, and tear gas. Official reports stated that 10 people, including a police officer, were killed.[12][1][4] 198 people including security forces were injured.[15]

Aftermath

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According to a police investigation, a number of participants in the demonstration and riots had arrived from Kashgar and Hotan.[10] Some of the participants in the incident fled from China to Afghanistan and Pakistan, but were detained by the U.S. military and handed over to the Pakistani government during the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, and were imprisoned in Guantanamo Bay detention camp in Cuba.[16] During incarceration, Chinese officials have visited Guantanamo to participate in interrogations.[16]

Exile sources claimed that 1,600 people[4] were arrested in a crackdown[17] carried out in the years immediately following the incident in Xinjiang. Rebiya Kadeer, who was present during the Ghulja incident, went on to become leader of the World Uyghur Congress.

According to Radio Free Asia, many Uyghurs who were arrested or detained on charges related to the incident have been sent to internment camps since 2017. Witnesses of the incident as well as family members, friends, and associates of those involved have also been allegedly rounded up and imprisoned.[18]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Deaths reported after separatist riot in Muslim region of China". The Irish Times. February 1997. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  2. ^ Uyghurs still push for accountability 25 years after Ghulja Massacre, Radio Free Asia, February 13, 2022
  3. ^ "China: Remember the Gulja Massacre? China's Crackdown on Peaceful Protesters". Amnesty International. February 2007.
  4. ^ a b c "China Uighurs Executed". BBC News. January 27, 1998.
  5. ^ "Xinjiang to Intensify Crackdown on Separatists", China Daily, October 25, 2001.
  6. ^ B. K. Potter, Philip. Terrorism in China: Growing Threats with Global Implications. Strategic Studies Quarterly.
  7. ^ Hastings, Justin V. (December 2011). "Charting the Course of Uyghur Unrest". The China Quarterly. 208 (208): 893–912. doi:10.1017/S0305741011001056. JSTOR 41447781. S2CID 153456613. Archived from the original on February 7, 2021.
  8. ^ Hastings 2011, p. 904.
  9. ^ Irwin, Peter (March 2, 2017). "Remembering the Ghulja Incident: 20th Anniversary of 'Uyghur Tiananmen' Passes With Little Notice". The Diplomat. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  10. ^ a b c "《三联生活周刊》：揭开"东突"分子的恐怖面纱" (in Simplified Chinese). 新浪. November 2, 2001. Archived from the original on June 11, 2019. Retrieved May 25, 2014.
  11. ^ "China's 'War on Terror'". BBC News. September 10, 2002.
  12. ^ a b "10 killed in ethnic clash in western China". CNN. February 10, 1997. Retrieved May 11, 2023.
  13. ^ "天山之痛——新疆恐怖事件回眸" (in Simplified Chinese). 南方周末. July 9, 2009. Archived from the original on July 15, 2009. Retrieved September 8, 2009.
  14. ^ James Millward (2004). Violent Separatism in Xinjiang: A Critical Assessment. Policy Studies, East-West Center Washington.
  15. ^ "乌鲁木齐"7•5"事件主要特点及其引发的意识形态几点思考" (in Simplified Chinese). 新疆哲学社会科学网. October 22, 2009. Archived from the original on May 25, 2014. Retrieved May 25, 2014.
  16. ^ a b "The Guantanamo 22". Aljazeera. Archived from the original on January 2, 2019. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
  17. ^ "Gross Violations of Human Rights in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region". Amnesty International. 1999.
  18. ^ Hoshur, Shohret (February 16, 2021). "Uyghur Who Served 18 Years in Jail After Ghulja Incident Again Handed 18-Year Sentence". Radio Free Asia. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
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