Xinjiang to Leapfrog from Deadly Riots

One year after the deadly riots, northwestern China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region began another working Monday peacefully.

In order to achieve lasting stability, China had launched a package of favorable policies to boost the less developed region's economy, an ambition described by local authorities as "leapfrog development."

Wu Jia has more.

Reporter:
One year after deadly ethnic clashes between Uyghur minorities and Han Chinese killed almost 200 people, northwestern China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has been under relatively tight security control. However, its expatriates say they are confident of the future of their hometown.

Tong Leisheng, director of Xinjiang Chinese People's Association in Australia, says he has been impressed by his visits home over the years.

"Xinjiang's change in the last two decades impressed me a lot when I went home last year, especially in the fields of education and private entrepreneurship. We are so proud of these changes."

The 62-year-old moved to Melbourne, Australia, in the 1980's also says he is glad to hear that the authorities are boosting another round of assistance to the less developed region.

Li Sheng, a Chinese border history expert with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, says all security efforts have laid the groundwork for any future economic plans.

"The region has never experienced that level of fierce rioting probably in a hundred years. So far, all sorts of threats remain and social mechanism is still weak. People in the region need security and stability. Government forces have taken efforts all the way to maintain stability and prevent any future riots. To be fair, they have met their security target one year on."

Local authorities have already announced their ambitions to boost the economy in the far western region.19 local governments have reaffirmed their commitments of assisting Xinjiang's agricultural, educational, and healthcare projects, as well other endeavors.

Li Dan, associate professor of politics with Xinjiang's Communist Party of China party school says people's welfare is at the top of the agenda.

"Funds should be used in an integrated approach and distributed to affordable housing projects, increasing farmer's income and industrial developments. Only increased income and improved welfare can make the some 20-million Xinjiang people feel confident about the strategy."

The favorable policy package covers a wide range of areas, including pioneering a resource taxes reform, aimed to raise local revenue in the resources-rich region.

For CRI, I'm Wu Jia.