In addition to the vast Xinjiang region in the northwest, the Chinese government’s crackdown on Muslims in China has made the Utsul (also known as the Hainan Hui), an ethnic minority of less than 10,000 people on the small island of Hainan in the south, a new target of the Chinese Communist Party.
This ethnic group lives in Sanya, Hainan Province, and has a history of nearly 1,000 years. Several local religious leaders and residents allege that only a few years ago, local officials supported their Islamic identity and their ties to Muslim countries. But signs in local stores and homes that once bore the key Islamic phrase “Allah is Great” are now covered by 1-foot (0.3 meters) wide stickers proclaiming the “Chinese Dream. Halal, Islamic Food is no longer visible on the signs and menus of local restaurants. Authorities have also closed two Islamic schools and twice attempted to ban Muslim schoolgirls from wearing headscarves.
These moves underscore Beijing‘s major policy shift. The CCP has made clear that restrictions on Islam and the Muslim community are intended to curb violent religious extremism. This is the rhetoric that justifies its policy of cracking down on Muslims in Xinjiang, but there has been little unrest here in Sanya.
Ma Haiyun, an associate professor at Frostburg State University in Maryland who specializes in Islam in China, said the tighter control over Hui Hui reflects the true nature of the Communist Party’s campaign against local communities. This is related to the attempt to strengthen government control, which is completely anti-Islamic.
Despite the Chinese government’s repeated denials that it is anti-Islamic, the five-year plan to “Chinese-ize Islam” has accelerated since 2018 after the State Council issued a secret order requiring officials to prevent Islam from meddling in secular Life and government functions.
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