Page 112 - The Winter of Islam and the Spring to Come

THE WINTER OF ISLAM AND THE SPRING TO COME
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were used to spread atheist propaganda. All available means of com-
munication were marshaled in a concerted effort to turn people away
from their religion. People were banned from learning about their faith,
and religious leaders were prohibited from teaching about it. However,
in the face of all this oppression, the people still held fast to Islam. 21
One of the methods of intimidation and pressure still used today
shows itself in the schools. University education in the region is given
in Chinese, and Muslims allowed to study in these universities make up
only 20 percent of the student body. Economic difficulties are another
barrier keeping the level of education low among the Muslim popula-
tion. Schools that teach in Chinese enjoy advanced facilities, but Uighur
schools lack such advantages. So-called religious education in schools is
built upon a pillar of atheism.
The fact that the alphabet has been changed four times in the space
of 30 years is another part of the assimilation policy aimed at local
Muslims. Despite the Cultural Revolution, Mao left the Chinese script
unchanged, but changed the Uighur alphabet from Roman letters to
Russian-type Cyrillic. After that alphabet had been used for a while, the
system went back to the Roman. Then, however, it changed over to
Arabic script in order to block any cultural bridges from being estab-
lished with Turkey. The difficulty in simply understanding each other
faced by generations whose alphabets have been switched around so
many times is all too clear.

Communist China's Anti-Islamic Role
in the Far East
The savage oppression of Muslim Uighur Turks in East Turkestan
continues unabated today. Chinese officials round up young Uighur
Turks who have committed no offense, just because they see them as
potential enemies of the regime. To escape this persecution, young peo-

ple flee to the mountains or the deserts.
Since 1996, tens of thousands of Uighur Turks have been held in
camps where it is known that many of them are subjected to severe tor-