Military Clampdown Continue in Inner Mongolia
- 13 years ago
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Authorities in China’s Inner Mongolia have taken swift actions to stop the largest demonstrations in the region in twenty years. Calls were circulating online last week for a major demonstration in the region’s capital Hohhot on Monday.
But military police poured into the region late last week to clamp down.
Students had formed the bulk of protests late last week. Now they’ve been forced to stay on campus, and the local Internet service has been disrupted.
[Resident]
“The schools are in lockdown. They’re scared of the students protesting. The city government buildings are all guarded. All the information has been blocked, and we don’t know anything. We haven’t been able to access the Internet for a couple of days.”
The unrest was sparked by the deaths of two Mongol herders earlier this month. In separate incidents, they were killed while protesting against local coal mining activities that have disrupted their traditional lifestyles.
Harvard scholar and political dissident Dr. Yang Jianli believe this outpouring of anger by Mongolians in the Chinese region is a result of simmering ethnic tensions.
[Dr Yang Jianli, Political Dissident]
“The population in Inner Mongolia is 80% Han Chinese. The Mongolian language is at a disadvantage. As more human rights problems occur in the People’s Republic of China, problems of ethnic suppression and cultural extinction will continue to be exposed. Today we’re just seeing one of these examples.”
In an effort to defuse tensions, state-run media Xinhua published reports that local authorities will now review the impact of mining activities on the environment and traditional livelihoods.
Even so, the heavy military presence in the region has raised concerns of a potential further crackdown. Rights groups are calling on the Chinese regime to exercise restraint.
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Authorities in China’s Inner Mongolia have taken swift actions to stop the largest demonstrations in the region in twenty years. Calls were circulating online last week for a major demonstration in the region’s capital Hohhot on Monday.
But military police poured into the region late last week to clamp down.
Students had formed the bulk of protests late last week. Now they’ve been forced to stay on campus, and the local Internet service has been disrupted.
[Resident]
“The schools are in lockdown. They’re scared of the students protesting. The city government buildings are all guarded. All the information has been blocked, and we don’t know anything. We haven’t been able to access the Internet for a couple of days.”
The unrest was sparked by the deaths of two Mongol herders earlier this month. In separate incidents, they were killed while protesting against local coal mining activities that have disrupted their traditional lifestyles.
Harvard scholar and political dissident Dr. Yang Jianli believe this outpouring of anger by Mongolians in the Chinese region is a result of simmering ethnic tensions.
[Dr Yang Jianli, Political Dissident]
“The population in Inner Mongolia is 80% Han Chinese. The Mongolian language is at a disadvantage. As more human rights problems occur in the People’s Republic of China, problems of ethnic suppression and cultural extinction will continue to be exposed. Today we’re just seeing one of these examples.”
In an effort to defuse tensions, state-run media Xinhua published reports that local authorities will now review the impact of mining activities on the environment and traditional livelihoods.
Even so, the heavy military presence in the region has raised concerns of a potential further crackdown. Rights groups are calling on the Chinese regime to exercise restraint.