Life, property protected in Xinjiang: white paper

BEIJING -- A white paper issued by China's State Council Information Office on Thursday said that life and property are respected and protected in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

Since the 1990s, violent terrorists, nationalist separatists, and religious extremists have plotted and committed a series of violent terrorist crimes, causing loss of life to and damaging the property of people of all ethnic groups, read the white paper titled "Human Rights in Xinjiang - Development and Progress."

In 2009, the July 5 riot in Urumqi killed 197, injured more than 1,700, and caused colossal damage to property, it read.

The Kunming railway station terrorist attack of March 1, 2014 caused 31 deaths and injured another 141, it added.

The white paper said the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has taken a series of measures designed to strike against violent terrorist crimes, strengthen social protection and control, modernize the governance system and capacity, and safeguard the lives and property of all the people of Xinjiang, whatever their ethnic group.

These measures include the promulgation and implementation of the Measures of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on Enforcement of the Anti-Terrorism Law of the People's Republic of China, it said.

Meanwhile, the white paper noted that the right to fair trial is maintained in Xinjiang, adding that there were 4,569 lawyers in Xinjiang in 2016.

Judicial organs in Xinjiang uphold the principles of legally prescribed punishment, presumption of innocence, and evidentiary adjudication, and fully protect citizens' right to fair trial at all stages from investigation to prosecution, to trial and execution.

A platform for judicial openness was established to release information on judicial proceedings, so as to ensure the public's right to information.

"Xinjiang fully respects and effectively guarantees the civil rights of its citizens in accordance with the law," the white paper read.