By Frank Ching
Journalist, Commentator in Hong Kong
Two weeks after the outbreak of ethnic violence in Xinjiang, Chinese authorities are working hard to convince the international public that those responsible were not just Uighur ``separatists" who want the region to gain independence from Beijing, but actually terrorists part of the al-Qaida network.
The China Daily, a state-run newspaper, published an article July 16 titled ``Urumqi riots part of plan to help al-Qaida." The article asserted, ``Evidence shows Uighur separatists who orchestrated the July 5 riots in Urumqi, capital of the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, have close relations with the Afghanistan-based al-Qaida."
The People's Daily Online reported on Monday that ``terrorism is the real driving force behind the deadly killing" on July 5, when close to 200 people, mostly Han Chinese, were killed as a result of the violence.
China has appealed to Muslim countries to see its side of the story and is working hard to maintain its position in the Islamic world.
A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, Qin Gang, appealed for understanding from the Muslim world. "We hope that the Islamic countries and our Muslim brothers can see the truth of the July 5 incident in Urumqi," he said. ``China and Islamic countries have long been respecting and supporting each other, and the Chinese Government and people always firmly support the just cause of Islamic countries to pursue national independence and safeguard state sovereignty."
So far, Turkey has been the most outspoken country in condemning China, with its prime minister labeling China's activity in Xinjiang as ``genocide."
While other Muslim governments have remained muted, their people have been more outspoken. In Indonesia, for example, demonstrators clashed with guards outside the Chinese embassy in Jakarta and called for a jihad, or holy war, in support of the Uighurs.
Similarly, in Kazakhstan, where there is a sizeable Uighur population, a rally was held Sunday to protest against the crackdown in Xinjiang.
And in Iran, prominent clerics have criticized the government for remaining silent on the events. Former president Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani in a sermon Friday condemned China for its crackdown, after which many of those present shouted, ``Death to China."
There is little doubt that China will have to pay a price for its policy in Xinjiang. But even more worrying to Beijing was a call for vengeance against Chinese people issued by a North African organization known as "al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb" (AQIM), an offshoot of the well-known terrorist organization. Many thousands of Chinese live and work in North Africa and could become targets.
China has alleged that the violence in Xinjiang was masterminded by the World Uighur Congress (WUC), which is headed by Rebiya Kadeer, a Uighur businesswoman now living in exile in Washington.
It has also linked the WUC to the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM), a group that seeks independence for Xinjiang and that has been labeled a terrorist organization by the United States, largely on the strength of evidence provided by China.
Hitherto, there has been little discernible connection between ETIM and al-Qaida, which has not made direct threats against China. There seems little reason why the terrorist organization would want to take on China, in addition to the United States. However, if Beijing continues to paint Uighurs with the same brush they do al-Qaida, this situation may change.
If al-Qaida does target Chinese interests in Africa or elsewhere, it is likely to push Beijing closer to Washington, which has been fighting insurgents in Afghanistan and border areas of Pakistan for more than half a dozen years.
In fact, Washington has been soliciting greater Chinese cooperation in its efforts, suggesting, for example, that Beijing could permit the Afghan government to buy food and fuel in western China, which adjoins Afghanistan.
Beijing appears to have an open mind regarding what role it can play, although it understandably does not want to become directly involved in war efforts in South Asia. However, if it sees Muslim fundamentalists as a threat, then it may well feel that it and the United States are up against the same enemy.
But the two countries will not see eye-to-eye on all issues. The United States will no doubt continue to view the struggle with international terrorists as being separate from attempts by Uighurs ― and Tibetans ― in China to achieve greater autonomy and religious freedom. It is inconceivable that Washington would support Beijing's domestic policy toward ethnic minorities.