Mr. Jeff Kingston toured northwest China and wrote this special report in the Japan Times:
The Uighur image in China is not very good, tied as it is with terrorist bombings, sporadic unrest and shady dealings. There are some 8-10 million ethnic Uighurs spread over China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkey and Russia. As Turkic-speaking Sunni Muslims, they are one of 56 ethnic groups recognized by the Chinese government.
Uighur literally means "united," and refers to urban, oasis-dwelling and settled agriculturists -- in contrast to the nomadic tribes in the region. In the eighth century, they presided over an empire stretching from the Caspian Sea to Manchuria, but they were subsequently defeated by the Tang Dynasty and also once became subjects of the Mongol leader Ghengis Khan.
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