1997 violent event in the Uyghur-Han conflict in Xinjiang
This article is about the 1997 Ghulja incident. For the Yining incident which led to the abolition of the East Turkestan Republic, see Abolition of the East Turkestan Republic.
The Ghulja, Gulja,[3][4] or Yining incident (Chinese: 伊寧事件, Yīníng Shìjiàn) was the culmination of the Ghulja protests of 1997, a series of demonstrations[5] in the city of Yining—known as Ghulja in Uyghur—in the Xinjiangautonomous region of China.
The region of Xinjiang in China has been subject to armed clashes and terrorist attacks throughout the 1990s by separatist militants particularly the Eastern Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM).[6] These include a string of bombings in Urumqi and Kuqa in 1992, with attacks escalating in 1995.[7]
In 1996, the Chinese government initiated a "Strike Hard" campaign to crack down on suspected separatist activity.[8] The meshrep practice became a target of the "Strike Hard" campaign.[9]
Incident
At around 9:00 am on February 5, 1997, demonstrations occurred during which the a crowd had marched shouting "God is great" and "independence for Xinjiang".[10][11]
According to a local police official, the crowd initially numbered in the dozens, but quickly swelled in size.[12] A video of the incident taken at the time reportedly showed individuals chanting similar slogans as well as burning their identification documents.[10]
At noon, the demonstrations escalated as the crowd, numbering at about 1,000,[1] began to riot, attacking police and local residents, as well as burning shops and vehicles.[13][1][14]
The crowd was reportedly dispersed by police using clubs, water cannon, and tear gas. Official reports stated that 10 people, including a police officer, were killed.[12][1][4] 198 people including security forces were injured.[15]
Aftermath
According to a police investigation, a number of participants in the demonstration and riots had arrived from Kashgar and Hotan.[10] Some of the participants in the incident fled from China to Afghanistan and Pakistan, but were detained by the U.S. military and handed over to the Pakistani government during the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, and were imprisoned in Guantanamo Bay detention camp in Cuba.[16] During incarceration, Chinese officials have visited Guantanamo to participate in interrogations.[16]
Exile sources claimed that 1,600 people[4] were arrested in a crackdown[17] carried out in the years immediately following the incident in Xinjiang. Rebiya Kadeer, who was present during the Ghulja incident, went on to become leader of the World Uyghur Congress.
According to Radio Free Asia, many Uyghurs who were arrested or detained on charges related to the incident have been sent to internment camps since 2017. Witnesses of the incident as well as family members, friends, and associates of those involved have also been allegedly rounded up and imprisoned.[18]
