Tight security as Olympic flame starts Xinjiang leg
Wednesday, 18 June 2008
URUMQI, (China), June 17 (AFP): Police imposed a security lockdown as the Olympic torch Tuesday started its run through China's mainly Muslim region of Xinjiang, seen as one of the most sensitive legs on its nationwide journey. The centre of the regional capital Urumqi was largely shut down and police checkpoints restricted movement throughout the normally bustling city.
Police imposed particularly heavy security at the central People's Square, where Tuesday's relay kicked off, and anyone entering had to go through metal detectors and bag searches.
The flame's passage through Xinjiang and the Tibetan regions of China are considered the most sensitive of the three-month journey to the Beijing Games in August because of simmering discontent among local ethnic groups
The three-day, four-city Xinjiang leg began with a 12-kilometre (7.5-mile) relay through Urumqi from People's Square, regarded as a symbol of Communist power in the city.
The crowd, numbering about 3,000, chanted "Go, China!" and "Go, Olympics!" as the relay got underway under sunny skies. Many had stickers of the Chinese flag on their cheeks.
They were overwhelmingly Han Chinese, with only a tiny number of Uighurs, the largest ethnic group in the region.
Leading away from the square, the crowds lining the route were also mostly Chinese, many of them young people given a break from their studies, as well as government employees. After the torch had passed, the security apparatus was quickly dismantled.
Xinjiang is a region of vast deserts and stunning mountains that is home to more than eight millions Uighurs, a Muslim, Central Asian people who speak a Turkic language.
Many Uighurs discreetly allege Chinese political and religious oppression and systematic discrimination against them in employment, education, and business.
The Urumqi relay appeared to get under way without trouble, but AFP could not immediately determine its further progress as Chinese authorities required journalists to choose just one vantage point.
Police imposed particularly heavy security at the central People's Square, where Tuesday's relay kicked off, and anyone entering had to go through metal detectors and bag searches.
The flame's passage through Xinjiang and the Tibetan regions of China are considered the most sensitive of the three-month journey to the Beijing Games in August because of simmering discontent among local ethnic groups
The three-day, four-city Xinjiang leg began with a 12-kilometre (7.5-mile) relay through Urumqi from People's Square, regarded as a symbol of Communist power in the city.
The crowd, numbering about 3,000, chanted "Go, China!" and "Go, Olympics!" as the relay got underway under sunny skies. Many had stickers of the Chinese flag on their cheeks.
They were overwhelmingly Han Chinese, with only a tiny number of Uighurs, the largest ethnic group in the region.
Leading away from the square, the crowds lining the route were also mostly Chinese, many of them young people given a break from their studies, as well as government employees. After the torch had passed, the security apparatus was quickly dismantled.
Xinjiang is a region of vast deserts and stunning mountains that is home to more than eight millions Uighurs, a Muslim, Central Asian people who speak a Turkic language.
Many Uighurs discreetly allege Chinese political and religious oppression and systematic discrimination against them in employment, education, and business.
The Urumqi relay appeared to get under way without trouble, but AFP could not immediately determine its further progress as Chinese authorities required journalists to choose just one vantage point.