A succinct analysis of the economic factors which have led to a rise in Islamic fundamentalism in the far western Chinese province of Xinjiag. Bottom line? The opening of China's trade markets -- gaige Kaifang -- and the importation of cheaper American cotton coupled with cancellation of governmental subsidization of farmers' losses have driven the the cotton-farming Uighurs of Xinjiang out of business.
Posted by Donald Douglas at November 11, 2003 09:35 AM | TrackBack
As farmers bitterly disposed of their unsold bales, mosque attendance skyrocketed. Radical Imams emerged railing against the Han 'infidels'. In essence, ultraconservative religion became the spiritual dimension of backlash. Gaige kaifang had ravaged the Xinjiang economy, and suddenly destitute Uighurs flooded to Friday service both for solace and, by enlisting in an activity antithetical to the secular state, to express their anger at the regime.