Xinjiang is an autonomous region in China where many ethnicities live together. It has an area of about 1.6 square km and borders many countries in central Asia, Russia, India, and Mongolia. Its population is about 25 million people of diverse ethnicities and cultures. Even though it has vast land and a small population, over 90% of its land is uninhabitable.
The most of lands in Xinjiang are high mountains and deserts
The World got to know Xinjiang after a series of terrorist attacks in 1990, 2009, and 2014. Recently, many Western countries criticized China for forcing Uygur people into internment camps and mistreatment. Some even blame China for cultural genocide. You can’t get the truth out of China where foreign reporters can’t freely investigate and local people are afraid to talk. Many Uygur people demand more freedom even independence from China. Look at history, Xinjiang had been under many Chinese Dynasties for over a thousand years. It is understandable when many Uygur people in Xinjiang demand independence from China because their language and culture are closer to Turkey than China. Uygur people only make up about 45% of the Xinjiang population (10 million). China’s population is about 1,45 billion, and Xinjiang comprises about 1/6 total land in China. In addition, Xinjiang is located in a geographic strategy that helps China go to the Middle East, Central Asia, and Europe. Uygur people should forget about independence.
I don’t know if China mistreats or oppresses the Uygur people or not. When you look in general, Uygur people in China have more freedom than Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Malaysia. Uygur people can follow any religion they believe. Uygur children and women don’t have to follow many outdated Islamic laws. I don’t support China’s mistreat any ethnicities or religions. Anyone watched many radical Islamists explode bombs in public and massacred innocent people. They will support China’s fight against terrorism.