Central Asia
Xinjiang: 150 dead in Uighur unrest
Over 150 are dead and some 1,000 injured after Chinese security forces attacked a protest march by ethnic Uighurs, sparking widespread clashes in Kashgar, Xinjiang province.
Tag: Central Asia
Central Asia
Russia brokers deal on Pentagon access to Kyrgyz base?
Diplomatic sources say Moscow brokered a long-sought deal granting the US continued access to Manas air base in Kyrgyzstan—apparently fearing Islamist militant incursions into Central Asia.
Central Asia
Tibetan lama faces lengthy term in weapons charge
The trial opened this week in China’s Sichuan province for Phurbu Tsering Rinpoche, a respected Tibetan lama who faces 15 years in prison on a weapons possession charge.
Central Asia
Turkmenistan tilts to West following pipeline blast?
Turkmenistan accused the Russian state energy company Gazprom of causing a pipeline explosion, days after the Ashgabat government broached joining a new pipeline project bypassing Russia.
Central Asia
International protests follow death sentence for Tibetan protesters
International protests have greeted the sentencing of two Tibetans to the death penalty for their role in last year’s protests in Lhasa. Thirty-five Tiebtan protesters were arrested in Kathmandu.
Central Asia
New Tibetan uprising in Qinghai province
In the first major Tibetan protests since last year’s uprising, hundreds of residents in Ragya, Qinghai province, attacked a police station, leading to the arrest of nearly 100 monks.
Central Asia
Kyrgyzstan: opposition calls for protests
Opposition parties this week called for protests across Kyrgyzstan on March 27, amid worsening economic conditions and mounting accusations of government repression.
Central Asia
Tibet: repression continues, China Lobby strikes back
Tibetan protests in China continue to be met with harsh repression, now ignored by the media. But Beijing’s lobbyists were mobilized as US Congress passed a resolution honoring the Dalai Lama.
Central Asia
China claims blow against “Dalai clique”; Dalai Lama calls for autonomy
China claimed declaration of March 28 as “Serfs Emancipation Day” as a “tit-for-tat” against the “Dalai clique,” while in Dharamsala, the Dalai Lama called for “meaningful autonomy” for Tibet.
Central Asia
Chinese police shoot Tibetan monk in self-immolation protest
A young Tibetan monk was shot by Chinese police after he set himself on fire on the third day of the Tibetan New Year, at a market in Sichuan province’s Ngaba prefecture. It is not known if he is alive or dead.
Central Asia
China renews Tibet crackdown as New Year boycott looms
China is widening its crackdown on Tibetan activists, carrying out sweeps across the ethnic Tibetan western regions, as a campaign mounts to boycott Tibetan New Year Feb. 25 in protest of the repression.
Central Asia
Jew driver
China is denying claims aired by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination that up to a million Muslim Uighurs have been detained in "re-education camps" in Xinjiang region. But Beijing appears to be imposing harsh surveillance and restrictions on freedom of worship on Muslims throughout China, even requiring those making the pilgrimage to Mecca to be fitted with GPS tracking devices. Yet such methods almost always prove counter-productive, leading to resentment that only fuels the unrest that Chinese authorities are responding to. This week saw mass protests in Weizhou, Ningxia province, after authorities attempted to demolish a newly built mosque which they said had not received construction permits. After days of protest, authorities backed down and agreed to postpone the demolition. (Photo of protest at Weizhou Grand Mosque from Weibo via BBC News)