The main purpose of this report is to offer readers an overview of
new developments that have taken place in China with respect to
the party-state's management of Islam, as well as the consequences of
these new developments for Sino-Saudi relations. The report is organized
into four sections. The first section discusses the authoritarian turn
under way in China, which serves to contextualize the new religious
controls as the backdrop of a system-wide transformation. The second
section looks at the party-state's traditional approach towards the
religious sphere and the mechanisms of control it employs towards it.
The third section highlights some of the changes that have taken place
in the party-state's management of the religious sphere. It demonstrates
the departures from traditional approaches of control, especially with
regards to Islam and discusses some of the factors that
have contributed to altering the party-state's attitudes, including, for
example, Saudi Arabia's perceived role in promoting religious
subversion. The last section considers some of the consequences this may
carry for the future development of Sino-Saudi relations, and offers in
turn a few policy recommendations aimed at avoiding such outcomes.
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