Michael Dillon - Xinjiang in the Twenty-First Century: Islam, Ethnicity and Resistance

At the time of writing, Xinjiang, which has already endured decades of repression, is subject to the most draconian policies of policing and social control it has yet experienced. This insidious but highly effective subjugation of the Uyghur people of Xinjiang, in the name of a continuing War on Terror, has been largely unreported by the Western media which tends to respond to dramatic violent incidents. I hope that this book contributes to raising awareness of the desperate position in which the Uyghurs find themselves, as well as offering an analysis of how this situation has arisen and how it could be resolved.

The main argument of the book is outlined in the Introduction. , I have analysed the conflict and in the final chapter have offered tentative although pessimistic suggestions for a resolution. This has necessitated repeating some of the details of the various outbreaks of violence but as a result the sections should be sufficiently coherent to be read independently. The Postscript includes the latest information from Xinjiang at the time of writing.

It has always been necessary to exercise caution in naming those in Xinjiang who have provided information or otherwise assisted in my research, for fear of serious repercussions on their careers if not their liberty. The increased repression in the region at the time of writing has made this caution more essential than ever. Suffice it to say that without practical assistance and support from many individuals, mostly Uyghurs, inside Xinjiang it would not have been possible for me to carry out this work. Outside Xinjiang, my work on this book has been informed by contributions made by numerous academic colleagues to international conferences, particularly those organised by The George Washington University and the Universit Libre de Brussels in Washington and Brussels. For eyewitness evidence from Kashgar I am grateful to the film maker and photojournalist, Andreas Rassos. I am grateful to the editor of Central Asian Affairs , Marlene Laruelle, not only for organising those conferences but also for permission to use material in that first appeared in Kashgar and Khotan since 2010: Islam, ethnicity and traditional Uyghur culture in southern Xinjiang in Central Asian Affairs 2015.

At Routledge I have, as always, appreciated the support and encouragement of Peter Sowden who is responsible for publishing a growing series of important books on Xinjiang. I am also grateful for the helpful comments of copy editors.

Michael Dillon
Worksop, Nottinghamshire, August 2018