Hotan Prefecture: Times Newspaper and Government Leaders

hotan prefecture: The state-run Global Times newspaper on Tuesday quoted other local officials as saying that government leaders should push back against rather than comply with religious prohibitions against smoking to demonstrate their commitment to secularization, according to Metro News. The punishment appears to be the latest extreme measure by the authorities to exert their will in Xinjiang, particularly its southern portion including Hotan where Uighur culture is strongest. Jelil Matniyaz, Communist Party head of a village in Hotan Prefecture, was demoted for not daring to smoke in front of religious figures, said the report, issued Saturday and reproduced by official newspapers and websites . Matniyaz, identified as a member of Xinjiang's indigenous Uighur ethnic minority, was cited by the report as not having a resolute political stance. Chinese authorities and the state-controlled media have increasingly equated religious expression with extremism in their official rhetoric, partly in response to a bloody insurgency blamed on Uighur Islamic militants. Overseas Uighur advocate groups say the restrictions have only increased resentment over heavy-handed Chinese rule and fueled a cycle of radicalization and violence. The government has argued that its measures, such as prohibiting women from wearing Islamic veils or men from growing beards, are part of an effort to roll back dangerous religious fundamentalism. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.