Ali Unal
Chinese Academic
Manyuan Dong, vice president of the China Institute of International Studies,
said claims about the mistreatment of minorities in Xinjiang are not true, and
that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan knows about the environment, rights and
freedom issues in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region better than anyone and
therefore, Turkish journalists can ask him directly about the real situation.
The Chinese
Embassy in Ankara organized a conference titled "The Situation of Ethnic
Groups and Religions in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China" on June
20 with the participation of academics and experts from China. Speaking at the
conference, Chinese Academic Manyuan Dong said that most of the news that
circulates in Turkish media outlets about Xinjiang claiming that members of the
Uyghur minority are forced to change their names or forced to break their fast
do not reflect the truth. "Xinjiang is a place where various ethnic and
religious groups have lived in harmony throughout history and all the
minorities and religious groups have had the right to practice their religion
freely since the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region was established in
1955." He added that "Turkish President Recep Tayyyip Erdoğan who has
been to Xinjiang twice knows the environment in Xinjiang better than anyone,
thus Turkish journalists can also ask him questions about freedom of religion
in China directly, if they find our statements unsatisfactory."
