Hundreds of armed Han Chinese march in Urumqi

[Adsos Letter]

Source: AP

By WILLIAM FOREMAN, Associated Press Writer William Foreman, Associated Press Writer – 18 mins ago
URUMQI, China –

Police fired tear gas Tuesday to try to restore order as hundreds of Han Chinese armed with clubs marched through the Xinjiang capital of Urumqi, smashing shops and knocking over food stalls run by Muslims.

The city, where rioting and ethnic clashes killed 156 people two days ago, was extremely tense, with security officials breaking up a separate protest by the train station. Also, Muslim women in traditional headscarves faced off with armed Chinese police, wailing for the release of their sons and husbands detained after the riots.

Police used loudspeakers to appeal to the Han Chinese crowd to stop, but a group of about 300 protesters were joined by two other columns of marchers on Jiefang Nan Road. They appeared to be heading for the Grand Bazaar, the predominantly Muslim area of the city, but were blocked by police.

The crowd, which took up several blocks of the five-lane road, chanted "Unite" and "Modern Society," and waved wooden sticks, lead pipes, shovels and hoes in the air. As they headed down a back street toward a mosque, several loud explosions rang out followed by rising white puffs of smoke — followed by the smell of tear gas.


Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090707/ap_on_re_as/as_china_protest

[ck4829]

1. Chanting "Modern Society" while waving clubs?

Can't get much more ironic than that.

:crazy:

[tomm2thumbs]

2. very funny observation

[ohio2007]

7. Seeing is believing

the face of the future

"mad in China"

A Han Chinese man carries a spiked steel bar while using his cell phone to take photos as he joins a mob




http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x3957401#3957874

[muriel_volestrangler]

3. Ironically (or cleverly, on the part of the protesters), this was in front of foreign reporters

whom the Chinese authorities had brought in to show how they had regained control of the city, and to show things were quiet.

BBC report and video here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/8137824.stm

[muriel_volestrangler]

4. Just to clarify, that was the earlier protest by Uighur women I was talking about

not the Han march with clubs. I'm not such a fan of that.

[Coventina]

5. Han Chinese groups demand blood in revenge for deadly riots

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fgw-china-riots7-2009jul07,0,627990.story

Reporting from Urumqi, China, and Beijing -- Thousands of Chinese, many wielding sticks, clubs and knives, marched today through Uighur neighborhoods of the northwestern city of Urumqi chanting "blood for blood'' and singing the Chinese national anthem.

Chinese police and paramilitaries deployed by the thousands struggled to contain escalating tensions in the worst outbreak of ethnic violence the country has seen in years. The marchers, who appeared to be ethnic Han, the majority in China, were demanding revenge for rioting by the Turkic-speaking Uighurs on Sunday in which 156 died.

``Let the government take care of this,'' pleaded a local Communist official, Li Zhi, who stood on top of a van, shouting through a bullhorn. When he continued, "Han and Uighurs need to live in harmony,'' the crowd jeered him.

Loud booms, which some witnesses said were tear-gas canisters, could be heard in the distance although it was unclear who they were directed against. Earlier in the day, Uighur women and children had marched in protest against the arrests of about 1,400 Uighur men.

****************************************************************************

This is the story from the LA Times. I'm adding it to the thread because I want to keep this issue kicked....

[David__77]

6. Any recommendations of sources on this incident?

I want to see pro-China and anti-China references both. It will be difficult to tease out the facts.