Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan’s accusation of genocide in describing the rioting which killed 184 people in China’s northwestern Muslim region of Xinjiang should come as no surprise to those familiar with his outspoken, populist style.
The incident recalls the furore that followed Erdogan’s haranguing of Israel’s president over Israel’s Gaza offensive at the Davos forum in January when he told Shimon Peres: “When it comes to killing you know very well how to kill”.
That outburst attracted strong approval among Turks and in the Arab world, but was also seen as potentially damaging for predominantly Muslim but secular Turkey’s role as a Middle East mediator.
His latest comments have drawn an indignant response in China, and Turkish commentators are now voicing concerns that his undiplomatic approach could harm the relations which Turkey
is trying to develop with the world’s third-biggest economy.
The timing was unfortunate. President Abdullah Gul last month became the first Turkish president to visit China in 15 years, signing $1.5 billion worth of trade deals, according to Turkish media. He also visited Xinjiang during his trip.
Veteran Turkish political commentator Sami Kohen said it was natural for the Turkish people to show their sensitivity and anger over developments concerning their Uighur ethnic kin.
“But state policy must be more cautious and moderate. Speeches and reactions since the start of the Xinjiang crisis have created serious doubts on whether a harmonious and consistent policy has been set out,” Kohen said in Milliyet newspaper.
“It was seen with different incidents in the past that over-the-top expressions have put Turkish diplomacy in a difficult position and did not have any practical results,” he said.
The genocide label is particularly sensitive in Turkey, which strongly refutes Armenian claims that the killing of Armenians by Ottoman Turks during World War One constituted genocide.
The English-language China Daily has urged Erdogan to take back his remarks, describing them as interference in China’s internal affairs. Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said the accusation did not make sense.
On July 5, Uighurs attacked Han Chinese in the regional capital Urumqi after police tried to break up a protest against fatal attacks on Uighur workers at a factory in south China.
Han Chinese launched revenge attacks two days later in what was Xinjiang’s worst ethnic violence in decades. The death toll included 46 Uighurs, a Turkic people who are largely Muslim and share linguistic and cultural bonds with Central Asia.
Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi told his Turkish counterpart by telephone on Sunday the Urumqi riots were a grave crime orchestrated by the “three evil forces”, Xinhua news agency said, referring to extremism, separatism and terrorism.
Commentator Cengiz Candar said the situation called for cool heads, given China’s permanent membership of the United Nation’s Security Council, which gives it veto powers in issues concerning Turkey such as the divided Mediterranean island of Cyprus, neighbouring Iraq and Iran.
“Now is the time to overcome the ‘tension’ which has emerged between Turkey and China with a diplomacy which is cool, quiet and patient,” Candar said in the liberal daily Radikal.
That diplomacy could face a fresh test in the near future after Erdogan said last week Turkey would grant a visa to exiled Uighur leader Rebiya Kadeer, who is based in the United States.
China has blamed the ethnic unrest on exiled Uighur separatists, especially Kadeer, who denies the charge.
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Xinjiang first came under control of the Han people in the Han dynasty some 2100 years ago. At the time, the Han fought the Xiongnu people, an ethnically indeterminate group of nomads that stretched from Xinjiang to Manchuria. Uighur Turkic peoples are not native to Xinjiang. In fact, the Uighur Khanate was only in power for about a century between the 8th and 9th centuries when the Tang Dynasty in China was at its weakest. If we are talking about ancestral homelands, Xinjiang is definitely not a Turkic homelands. I urge those with Turkic blood to regard the facts and not race-pride and nationalism distorted propaganda.
- Posted by KirbyAlso, also…
Correct me if I am wrong, but I dont ever recall there to ever be a nation called ‘East Turkistan’ at anytime in history. There may be little brief blips when China was weak and lost direct control (in the past 150 years or so), but generally the region has been a part of China for quite a while. Regardless, China has it now, and no amount of bad spins, lies, or support from foundations that advocate color revolutions around the world (there are several…)…. or using wrong or fake photos to show “Chinese brutalities” (like Ms kadeer did at a news conference when she put up a big photo of an incident elsewhere and claimed it to be in Urumqi) will change that fact. As China becomes even stronger, these conflicts will disappear because the whole country will become better developed. If you dont like it, you can always move to Turkey.
- Posted by MikeAlso, if one wishes to defend the “oppressed” and seek justice, then it would be more convincing if one starts at home, with one’s own government, before pointing fingers elsewhere. Before you declare “free Xinjiang” or “Free Tibet”, think about returning real land to the Lakodas or the Sioux, or the Chicktaws, or restore the Hawaiian Monarchy. But of course, it’s a lot more difficult to do the surgery when the ugly wart is on one’s own face.
- Posted by MikeReuters took out my comments posted on the 16th around noon. Why Reuters? There were zero inappropriate language in my comments. All I talked about was “Cherry Picking” and the agendas of the western media, perhaps that hit your soft spot too hard?
- Posted by RichNo nation or society can escape the judgment of history. All have committed atrocities at some time. Nations are better served to advise each other through the door of humility rather than in a condescending or accusatory fashion.
- Posted by AnubisJust because these are facts, does not mean they are undisputable. One can easily draw parallels between ‘liberation’ of Tibet between ‘liberation’ of Baltic states, and so on. Cultural revolution is also a fact, which I doubt makes anyone chinese too proud. And just because the natural resourses are being ripped off for the benefit of mother state, it does not make for more sympathy towards the opportunist migration that follows, with all cultural indifference attached.
- Posted by jayj“Actually that is not the case. In China permits are often required to work in different cities, for example if you went from Xinjiang to Beijing you would need a special permit to legally work there.”
Indeed, this is not completely true. Today, more and more people have their own business or work for private companies. They can move more freely. And such permit doesn’t exist.
Even in the old days before China started reform, some people could still move from one place to another. Only those that worked for government could not move without approval.
- Posted by factChina has the best minority policy among all countries. Those minority terrorists are extremists. They don’t care how well the minority policy is, but just want to create conflicts and hatreds.
- Posted by judgeThis article didn’t talk about how many Hans died at the hands of rioters in the initial night. However it talked about how many Uighers died, AFTER it said about Han’s revenge mob the next day. But according to many sources, the 46 Uighers died are on the same day as the initial riot and there were not Uighers died during the Han’s counter mob in the second day.
Very interesting and subtle writing style.
- Posted by PeterChina handles everything like Tibet now Uygurs with intemidation and exucutions,China is a brutal regime to her own population, and not far distance they are going to dictate the World the way they want ,next to be Tiawan,just watch and see how quicly thye will anex this country, and all the Wolrd keep buyin their defecrive productts to support this govrement, we should boycott the Cj=hinese good here in USA for sure.
- Posted by MarkA Chinese saying that the sequence for a peaceful world order is: 1)STAND TALL YOURSELF, 2)TAKE CARE OF YOUR FAMILY, 3)MAKE SURE RAN YOUR OWN COUNTRY SMOOTHLY AND FINALLY and only then, 4) THE WORLD WILL BE PEACEFUL. I wish people mind their own business more and spend less time in pointing the finger at the others! Let China ran their own country. I think they are just doing fine. Don’t you think so???
- Posted by Kenneth3Obviously, this article was carefully worded to be technically true, yet has effectively given the impression that this was just another oppression of the government against its people.
I don’t think this is just bias against China. This is the so called “civilized” way of telling lies. And unfortunately, this has become prevalent in the west.
- Posted by objective reader” I just want to remind them that these territories, like all other territories, provinces, autonomous regions etc, are all part of China. As such, there is no reason why any law abiding Chinese nationals, be they Han, Uyghers, or Hui etc cannot travel/migrate there to earn a living.”
Actually that is not the case. In China permits are often required to work in different cities, for example if you went from Xinjiang to Beijing you would need a special permit to legally work there.
- Posted by MalcolmThe Chinese doesn’t belong to East Turkistan… China out of East Turkistan now!!! East Turkistan is the ancestral homeland of all Turks, including modern Turks and it is the land which binds the Turkic people from Mongolia all the way to Turkey and we are all have the same language, customs and closely related to each other!!! This is a Turkish land and illegal occupied by CCP for 50 years, but it will be go back to the Turkish people… China out of all the Turkish land now where you don’t belong!!! OUT NOW!!! You are not welcome anymore as we know you were just lying from 1949 with the false promise of an independent statehood and proved yourself a total liar and duface!!! We are independent in 1949 too and with the Chinese lies, went for a Soviet Union like federation and instead we are duped… No more!!! China get out of Turkish land on your own or you will be forced too…
East Turkistan(so called Xinjiang) is never a part of China and will never be… If you say so, then the entire Russia, Korea and Vietnam will be as they are ruled by the Mongol empire only during which for the first time, the Mongols ruled Turkistan as well as Russia, Korea, Vietnam etc from Beijing. Qing dynasty were involved with East Turkistan because one power hunfery traitor in Uyghur history(appak Hoja) in order to rule East Turkistan asked help from Qing Dynasty which tantamount to leading tiger backyard. Anyway, Qing dynasty also ruled Mongolia, Korea and Vietnam at some point and that doesn’t make those countries to be part of China as well. I will say up until 1949, the Chinese connection is very tenous at most and that explains why the Chinese population is less than 2% from official Chinese statistics. You also not forgot from Mongolia all the way to Turkey, they are all Turkic people with almost same language and customs and people do pay attention to what is happening to Uyghurs… China out of East Turkistan where you don’t belong now!!! Stop genociding Uyghurs!!! Release the thousands of innocent prisoners!!! Restore the communications to East Turkistan!!!
- Posted by Andy JackChina is sponsoring state terrorism and countries like Sudan, Iran, North Korea, Mianmar where there are genocides and people are brutally oppressed and killed. China is the sponsor and behind the most oppresive countries in the world and instigating violence in most of the Asian and African countries. They are doing the same thing to its ethnic minorities too. Wake up Americans,
- Posted by Scott McPhersonthe Chinese already steal all the manufacturing jobs from you and your technology and very few basic manufacturing jobs left in the States and responsible for the disappearance of middle class and the necessary jobs to support them. They are responsible for causing this depression worldwide! They took your money and use it to genocide Uyghurs, Tibetans, the Darfur genocide, and to sponsor all the state terrorism and intimidating all the neighboring countries and inciting violence in most African and Asian countries! Wake up America, boycott all the Chinese goods and anything from China and support the fight of Uyghurs, Tibetans, Sudanese, Mianmar and other being oppressed and genocided minorities!!!
Ergun
Stick to the topic instead of your nonsensical genocidal denialist Turkish propaganda, just for a change!
- Posted by johnI would like to make clear one thing. There are some in the west who wonder why the “Chinese” are “doing” in Xinjiang, or Xizhang (Tibet). I just want to remind them that these territories, like all other territories, provinces, autonomous regions etc, are all part of China. As such, there is no reason why any law abiding Chinese nationals, be they Han, Uyghers, or Hui etc cannot travel/migrate there to earn a living. I have travelled extensively in China, and I have been to Xinjiang (it is a beautiful place! and Urumqi is quite a nice city…clean, and modern) and Xizhang (Lhasa is not such a nice city…very backward), as well as most provinces in the heartland. I have met Hans in Xinjiang, Uyghers in the heart of Beijing and Shanghai, and Huis scattered all across China’s south. There is nothing strange about this, just as you can see people of different races and ethnicities scattered across the states of the USA. So why would you even question “why the Hans are there? Do you question why white Americans are found in Hawaii, or Alaska, or New Mexico? This has nothing to do with force migration, but good hard working people migrating to different part of the country to work and live….In fact, there are plenty of Uyghurs who live and work in southern Chinese cities like Guangzhou, and nobody is screaming that they are there to “drown” out the local people. The comment is at best terribly misinformed, or at worse a parroting of political propaganda from those who wish to destabilize China from within.
Just as an aside….The Uyghurs are not “native” to Xinjiang in any meaningful sense from a historical perspective. The region of Central Asia has always witnessed huge movements of people through the centuries due to wars and other factors. The Uyghurs were originally from Northeastern Iran, and they moved into Xinjiang because theyw ere driven out by the ancient Persians. In fact, when they first arrived in the region that would be modern day Xinjiang, there were already substantial Han Chinese settlements in the area. To imply that the Uyghurs have somehow a historical “right” to a region as volatile and in flux as Xinjiang, and to further assume that the Hans were “invaders” are distortions of history.
The fact is, both Xinjiang and Xizhang are part of China today, and that is the fact on the ground.
- Posted by MikeHow many ppl were killed in Tian an men square in 1989? Chinese government said 4!!! and no student!!! That means a lot here..
- Posted by Demand for justicecomments critical of muslim extremist are self censored by western media? so much of free speech….my ass
- Posted by pgkiaYou mention the 46 Uighur deaths, but no mention of the 137 deaths of the HAN chinese?
Only ARMENIAN claims that it was genocide? Really? 21 countries have officially recognized it as genocide, and most genocide scholars and historians accept this view.
This is completely unprofessional and distorted.
- Posted by Alicia