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Foreign scholars, officials denounce Urumqi riot

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-07-20 15:19

BEIJING: Scholars and officials from other countries have strongly denounced the July 5 riot in Urumqi, capital of China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, and expressed their support to the Chinese government's measures to maintain social order and stability.

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In an interview with Xinhua on Friday, Bernard Boussougou Moungonga, a researcher with a Gabonese humanities institute, said he backed the Chinese government's measures to maintain stability in Xinjiang.

Moungonga condemned the separatist forces operating outside China for attempting to split China, adding that all these schemes are doomed to fail.

It is imperative for leaders of any country to brush aside intervention by external forces and guarantee the safety of their citizens' life and property, he said.

Moungonga, who has visited Xinjiang as a visiting scholar, said he was deeply impressed by the fact that all ethnic groups in Xinjiang live in harmony and their culture and traditions are fully respected.

Syrian Ambassador to China Khalaf Al-Jarad said Friday that his country supports the Chinese government in taking necessary measures to safeguard security, stability and public order in Xinjiang.

In a written interview with Xinhua, Al-Jarad said the Syrian government fully supports China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and is against any interference in the country's internal affairs by finding whatever excuse.

He said he had been very much impressed by Xinjiang's prosperity when he visited China in 2003 in his capacity as editor-in-chief of a Syrian newspaper.

He said that the 56 ethnic groups in China share equal rights and jointly shoulder responsibilities to develop the country.

"People of different ethnic groups in Xinjiang who believe in faith lead normal religious lives, live together in peace and harmony like brothers and sisters, and are content with their lives. This is typical of the Chinese society at large," Al-Jarad said.

The ambassador said he believed the July 5 riot was aimed at disrupting stability, undermining the harmony and close links among the various ethnic groups, and undercutting social development.

He said it was necessary for the Chinese government to take actions to protect Xinjiang's stability, restore law and order, and prevent extremists and outside forces from disrupting Xinjiang's peace and stability.

Al-Jarad said violence has nothing to do with religion, and goes against the religious doctrines of peace and fraternity.

Li Liangyi, a Singaporean expert on tourism told Xinhua that the July riot in Urumqi disrupted the harmonious development in Xinjiang, and is definitely against the will of the general public in China.

He said he is confident that the Chinese government will take measures in accordance with the law and promptly restore order in Xinjiang.

It is the responsibility of the government to maintain ethnic harmony and safeguard social stability and economic development, Li said.

A handful of people undermined social harmony in Xinjiang and caused great loss of life and property, he said, adding that their violent acts must be condemned.

In an interview with Xinhua, Yakov Berger, a senior research fellow with the Institute of Far Eastern Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences said that the July 5 violence in Xinjiang seriously affected the stability of the region, and the Chinese government's measures to maintain social order are fully appropriate.

He said the separatist forces from inside and outside the country had plotted to create social unrest and undermine ethnic unity, so it is necessary for the Chinese government to take measures to prevent the recurrence of similar incidents.