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As the learned analysts misinterpret American gains in Iraq as heralding the end of the global jihad movement, news from elsewhere is already showing how wrong they are. "Radical Islam stirs in China's remote west," by Ben Blanchard for Reuters, July 6 (thanks to the Constantinopolitan Irredentist):
KASHGAR, China (Reuters) - In a backstreet of the old Silk Road city of Kashgar, the Chinese government has been spray-painting signs on dusty mud brick walls to warn against what it says is a new enemy -- the Islamic Liberation Party.Better known as Hizb ut-Tahrir, the group says its goal is to establish a pan-national Muslim state, or Caliphate.
Hizb ut-Tahrir is an international jihadist organization.
China says Hizb ut-Tahrir are terrorists, and claim they operate in the far western region of Xinjiang, home to some 8 million Muslim, Turkic-speaking Uighurs, many of whom chafe under Chinese rule.But the group, and some observers, say they do not espouse violence, and they accuse China of playing up the threat as an excuse to further crack down in restive Xinjiang, especially ahead of this summer's Beijing Olympics.
They don't espouse violence. They espouse Sharia. Does China want to live under Sharia? Do free people want to live under Sharia? Does it matter that Hizb ut-Tahrir won't be blowing anyone up on its way to instituting this oppressive system?
"Strike hard against the Islamic Liberation Party" and "The Islamic Liberation Party is a violent terrorist organization" read the signs in Kashgar, written in red in both Chinese and Uighur's Arabic-based script.Residents passing by appear to give little heed to the notices, accustomed as they are to daily barrages of propaganda from the government denouncing "splittism," "illegal religious activities" and calling for ethnic unity and harmony.
"I don't know what that group is," said one Uighur, who declined to give his name, shaking his head and scurrying away. [...]
Beijing accuses militant Uighurs of working with al Qaeda to use terror to bring about an independent state called East Turkestan. It claims to have foiled at least two Xinjiang-based plots this year to launch attacks during the Beijing Games.
But the emergence of Hizb ut-Tahrir is a recent phenomenon in Xinjiang.
"The organization is extremely resilient and its influence, although limited to southern Xinjiang, seems to be growing," said Nicholas Bequelin of Human Rights Watch.
"The prison authorities are also worried about the influence of Hizbut followers on other inmates," he added.
But it seems unlikely they represent the threat to Xinjiang that China likes to portray, said Dru Gladney, president of the Pacific Basin Institute at Pomona College, California, and a Uighur expert.
"For most Uighurs who are activists, though some of them are very religious in their Islam, their main goal is sovereignty for Xinjiang. Hizb ut-Tahrir doesn't support that. They support a worldwide Caliphate, not any one independent region," he said....
Sure, but one is a step to the other.
Posted by Robert at July 7, 2008 7:36 AM
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"...some 8 million Muslim, Turkic-speaking Uighurs, many of whom chafe under Chinese rule."
Reuters explains it all, they're "chafing" under Chinese rule. I guess Peking can deal with the situation by sending in lots of ointment.
It seems that Moslems chafe under almost anyone's rule, even that of other Moslems. As the old song went: "poison iiiiiiiivvvvyyyyy . . . gonna need an ocean of calomine lotion" to deal with the chafing of a billion or so itching Islamics.
and then:
But it seems unlikely they represent the threat to Xinjiang that China likes to portray,...
"... They support a worldwide Caliphate, not any one independent region," he said....
Either way, as an independent country or part of a worldwide caliphate, Xinjiang would no longer be part of China. Either way, China loses.
Of course, the Chinese are almost as bad as the Islamics in claiming other lands. The Chicoms take the view that any area that was ever ruled by China should presently be ruled by China. Hence the seizure of Tibet, and the claim to Taiwan. However I think the Chinese would be content merely with the lands of Genghis Khan's empire, while the Islamics want the whole world.
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at July 7, 2008 8:18 AM
I don't understand why people keep claiming that the goal of Hizb ut-tahrir is to establish the caliphate. The goal of Hizb ut-Tahrir is islams domination of the world, whereas the caliphate is but a steppingstone. Danish "experts" get it wrong as well, so I'm guessing they can't read.
It's also wrong that they don't espouse violence. Hell, Robert, you even linked to an article about Hizb ut-Tahrir urging muslims to join the jihad in Iraq. How can that not be "espousing violence"?
Fact is they support violence, but only violence they believe is in the spirit and/or interest of (their understanding of) islam. If an "amir" calls for jihad to institute islam, then Hizb ut-Tahrir will answer. And ofcourse, the caliphate is obligated to wage jihad to spread islam...
at July 7, 2008 8:22 AM
Will there be complaints about islamophobia in China? Or a Council on Chinese-Islamic Relations? I'm sure the Chinese will find a way to deal with them.
Posted by: plumberger at July 7, 2008 8:42 AM
Maybe the Chinese will follow the Saudi lead and build spas and recreation centers for seasoned and aspiring terrorists...Somehow I doubt it. The Chinese have had a long time to learn how to 'convince' people. The Hizb ut-Tahrir will eventually be convinced...
Posted by: duh_swami at July 7, 2008 9:09 AM
Somehow, China has missed the connection between the Uyghur movement and the larger Islamic Jihad that includes, but not exclusively limited to Iran's quest for nukes, the Arab Jihad against Israel, Pakistan's Jihad against India (which Beijing all but supports). It would be interesting to see their reaction once they figure out that repressive moves in Xinxiang - good as they are - won't be adequate in wiping out the threat as long as Islam is on the move worldwide.
Xinxiang isn't the only place in China with a significant Mohammedan population - it's there in Gansu and Ningxia as well. Okay, they aren't ethnically the same as the Turkic Uyghurs, but what's to prevent the Uyghurs from claiming them as well, particularly since their external ummah support would be demanding that as well.China says Hizb ut-Tahrir are terrorists, and claim they operate in the far western region of Xinjiang, home to some 8 million Muslim, Turkic-speaking Uighurs, many of whom chafe under Chinese rule.
They don't espouse violence. They espouse Sharia. Does China want to live under Sharia?Technically, they could claim that they aren't espousing Shariah for all of China, but just Xinxiang Uyghur AR. But the same can be said of Islamic claims on Kashmir, however, it's well known that they'd love to reclaim all of India if they could. Similarly, even if the Mohammedans got Xinxiang, Gansu, Ningxia and parts of Qinghai, what's to guarantee that they won't be targeting the Han Chinese in the rest of China next - similar to Fatah and Hamas claims on all Israel or SIMI claims on all India?
Finally, it would be absolutely fascinating to see Jihadi groups pull off something in Beijing next month. If they manage to bloody the one showpiece China has been using to re-brand itself worldwide, it'd be interesting to see how China retaliates. It's not going to be anything like the US after 9/11 - it'd probably be more like Chengiz Khan after the revolt of Herat.
Posted by: Infidel Pride at July 7, 2008 10:54 AM
"China says Hizb ut-Tahrir are terrorists"
I have no doubt in my mind that if they become a problem China will smash them. Since when did China care about international opinion? Remember Tieniman Square, the forced late term abortions and abandoned babies due to one child limit? How about their love of dog or anything else cuddly and edible? Then there's the wonderful "pick your own sheep honey and throw it-to-the-lions park":
Posted by: Kemaste at July 7, 2008 11:39 AM
Meanwhile the Chinese continue to arm Iran and to block all efforts to stop Iran's nuclear program. Meanwhile, they will deal with their own Muslim population - the way they deal with all dissidents - harshly.
They just have to wait until after the Olympics.
Posted by: PMK at July 7, 2008 12:36 PM
China vs jihadists. The Chinese government has the will and the means to defend itself. My money is on China to win - game, set and match.
Posted by: MP at July 7, 2008 2:30 PM
The US State Dept. sociopaths and dastardly neoliberals/neocons such as the God-accursed Morton Abramowitz and his evil cult the International Crisis Group are going Satanic aiding jihad in both Xinjiang and the Central Asia because they expect it to flare-up on China and Russia. To just say that the lessons of aiding bin Laden in Afghanistan - in which both Abramowitz and Robert Gates played key roles - haven't been learned, would be a vast understatement. At the same time, Gates, cowardly US military top brass and the State Dept. sociopaths are restraining Israel from bombing Iran, keeping the IAF from preventing nuclear jihad against both Israel and America.
Ruslan Tokhchukov, EnragedSince1999.
Posted by: Enragedsince1999 at July 7, 2008 3:36 PM
Jihadists unwittingly aiding Chinese long-term plans by weakening the West:
http://bravenewsworld.blogspot.com/2008/06/islamonazis-unwittingly-aiding-red.html
Posted by: Max Publius at July 7, 2008 5:00 PM
China, whether ancient or modern, is utterly incompatible with sharia.
Even under the post-Maoist greedy imperialist tyrants [and read Jung Chang, 'Wild Swans', and her biography of Chairman Mao, to get some idea of what Mao was and did, and the havoc he wreaked upon Chinese civilisation and society] ordinary Chinese like: alcohol, pork, gambling, music, singing, dancing, and uncovered women in pretty dresses.
China has a huge and ancient tradition of visual arts and sculpture and poetry - Mao smashed a lot of it, but there is still quite a lot left, and there are plenty of modern-day artists and sculptors maintaining the tradition, beavering away, representing human and animal forms. Indeed, one sculptor I heard of was using traditional wood-carving techniques to represent stories from the Christian Bible.
The Bible Society is totally banned in places like Iran and Saudi Arabia, but is able to operate in China (as also in Russia).
China persecutes the Christians sporadically, and at times it's pretty terrible, but it's still not as bad as under Islam. I have spoken with Christian people who lived and worked in China, and attended both 'registered' and 'unregistered' Christian congregations...both of which were growing by leaps and bounds.
There is more hope for China, in the long run, than there is for the Islamosphere.
Meanwhile, speaking strategically, as an Australian, I think our best hope for safety against the immediate threat from Muslim Indonesia and its jihadis, and the longer-term threat from old-fashioned Chinese imperialism, is to cap our Muslim population, resolutely squash the jihad within our borders, keep our US alliance strong, and do everything we can to encourage both the US and India to defend themselves against jihad within their borders. For the US and India have the numbers to 'balance' China.
Alliances with Philippines, Japan, South Korea, Thailand and Singapore are also advisable, with assistance to Thailand and Philippines to squash the jihad in all its forms within *their* boundaries.
Advice to any Australian intelligence officers and defence forces personnel who may be lurking at this website. Do please hurry up and read, if you have not already read, the following:
1. Sun Tzu (to understand the Chinese military playbook) and
2. Mr Spencer's 'Onward Muslim Soldiers' together with S K Malik 'The Quranic Concept of War', Majid Khadduri, 'War and Peace in the Law of Islam', Coughlin 'to Our Great Detriment', and Raymond Ibrahim, 'the al-Qaeda Reader'.
at July 7, 2008 8:18 PM
Never met a Chinese who didn't want to be rich.
China is communist in name only.
If it wasn't for Mao's terror China would have never gone down that road.
Posted by: sheik yer'mami at July 7, 2008 8:46 PM
I made a visit to Beijing a few months ago where I was taken to a 'Muslim' restaurant on the shores of Lake Hohai which served pork and beer. Have you ever heard of a Chinese restaurant which does not serve either pork or beer?
Walking down Ox Street (Beijing's Muslim quarter), I could not see a single hejab or burka. There was nothing to indicate that there was anything specially Muslim about this part of town at all.
I feel sure that if anyone dared to assert their 'Muslim identity' (over and above their Chinese identity) the ordinary citizens of Beijing rather than the repressive Chinese government would quickly make their opinions known to the offender.
Posted by: LondonBorn&Bred at July 12, 2008 12:58 PM
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