Karen_A._Mingst,_Ivan_M._Arregu_n-Toft]_Essentia

174 CHAPTER FivE ■ The STaTe

centered in this area, but Uighurs also live in Kaza khstan, Kyrgyzstan, and
Uzbekistan, with smaller numbers in Mongolia and Af ghan i stan. They have a
long history of fighting for in de pen dence as Uighuristan or East Turkestan.
When vast mineral and oil deposits were found in Xinjiang in the 1950s, Han
Chinese began to move into the region at the urging of the government, which prom-
ised the settlers infrastructure and jobs. But to the Uighurs, the ethnic Han Chinese
mi grants are colonists; Uighur Islamic faith, traditional language, and economic pros-
perity are being stifled by the official Han policies.
Following 9/11, the Chinese government began to refer to Uighurs and the East
Turkestan Islamic Movement as terrorists. As more ethnic Han moved in, the Chinese
have come to dominate media coverage and the confrontation has grown. In 2009,
200 people were killed and 2,000 people wounded in clashes between the two groups. In
2013, Muslim separatists killed several Chinese in the heart of Beijing. As Uighurs con-

INDIA

CHINA

PAKISTAN

Jammu and Kashmir

(administered by India)

Islamabad

Kashmir

(administered by

Pakistan)

Ladakh

NEPAL

Delhi

Areas held by China

claimed by India

Line of

control

Area ceded by Pakistan to

China, claimed by India

Disputed

border

Kashmir, 2016
Note: The Line of Control separates the two sides in the Kashmir conflict.