It is in America’s interest to cultivate democratic, secular political thinking among Uighurs no less than among Iraqis or other Muslim populations.
At a modest level, America already supports this. In 2005, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice helped secure the release of Rebiya Kadeer, a Uighur businesswoman who lives in Fairfax County and leads the Uighurs in exile (even as two of her adult children are in prison in Xinjiang). Kadeer has condemned acts of violence by Uighurs as well as Han Chinese, and while Chinese officials reportedly blame Kadeer for the recent riots, she has said the Chinese police provoked the riots. The National Endowment for Democracy, an independent organization funded by Congress, supports the Uyghur Human Rights Project, which documents and disseminates information about Chinese abuses. Radio Free Asia broadcasts in Uighur one hour a day. These programs should be expanded and new initiatives undertaken.
The choice in Xinjiang is not between Chinese communist repression of the Uighurs and radical Islamism. It is time for the United States to choose another option and develop a Uighur policy rooted in democracy and secularism.
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