There has been no Internet in Far West China (Xinjiang) since the violence between Han Chinese and the native Uighurs. Some reports have as many as 500,000 Hans leaving Xinjiang since the violence, and the Chinese government now allowing Hans to sell to anyone other than a Han if they leave. This could put a big time kibosh on the governments’ plans to flood the remote province with Hans.

Uighur in Far West China

We were there a few years ago on our Silk Road Crossing on our tandem bicycle. Relations between Uighurs and Hans were strained then. Neither side will give up easily.

We recently crossed Sichuan Tibet on our tandem bicycle and saw even more stress between the majority

We were stopped at least once each day, to check our passports

Han and  the Tibetans, though they are still the majority in mountainous Sichuan. China has its hands full with minority populations, and it only will get worse if economic conditions do not improve for the poor.

China is a big and complex country with wide racial divides and challenging economic conditions. We should be aware of their major issues for the betterment of future relations.