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'My friends may flee this city, but nothing would make me leave my home. Nothing'

By Zhao Huanxin (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-07-15 07:47

A former armed police offer, Wang Xuefeng is trained in mental and physical toughness.

Both have been severely tested in the past week but the 30-year-old Han, who was born and raised in Urumqi, has vowed the recent violence will not make him consider taking his family and abandoning his home for one second.

"There is no way my family and I would leave Xinjiang because of the recent trouble," the lawyer told China Daily, adding that the events of the last 10 days, which includes the slaughter of at least 184 people, including 137 Han people on July 5, would not erode his confidence in Uygurs, Hui or other ethnic groups.

After the tension started to die down, he called investors in Fujian, Guangdong and Shanxi provinces to check if they were still interested in joint ventures in the local coal, gas and jewelry markets only to learn most now intended to back out.

Wang, who spends his time between his home city and Shanghai, said: "One of my friends just picked up and took his family away once and for all. Me, I will never leave my birthplace behind."

Today, the city is still heavily policed and is still firmly in the media spotlight. Some fear the withdrawal of both could open the door for more violence. But Wang is unconcerned. "Any more violence would further ravage businesses, ruin the tourism industry and prevent thousands of citizens from making a living," he explained. "People know that any more bloodshed would serve no good to anyone. The July 5 riot was a dagger that caused a sharp pain in the heart of everyone. Like all pain, no one wants to repeat it."

Two days after the riot, some Han people took to the city's streets seeking revenge for the brutal Uygur attack. The number of casualties is not yet known.

But being an ex-police officer, he warned of the dangers of citizens taking "justice" into their own hands.

"Only the government can act in response to the July 5 violence, not individuals. The Han should have acted in a peaceful manner rather than resort to violence themselves. Any further retaliation could be the spark that sets off the tinderbox," he said.

As a boy, he played with ethnic minority neighbors, and he has grown up respecting the rich variety of culture in the Urumqi, capital of the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, and around.

"Uygurs are honest and enthusiastic people who respect their religion and value friendship and traditions. Many of my Han friends have married to Uygur or Hui women," said Wang, who has a Hui girlfriend.

"But Han people sometimes use 'provocative' behavior to vent their annoyance. This is fine with other Han people but may cause trouble if someone turns to a Uygur and tries that."

Cultural differences have proved a big divide, he said. "Why is it only the ethnic minorities dancing and singing, while the Hans are more engaged in making money? They should engage more and spend more time together," he said. "Han or Uygur people, they are all humans and have the same feelings."

He proposed more solid infrastructure investment to improve the livelihoods of the Xinjiang people.

From his experience on the day of the July 5 riot, Wang said he feels some Uygurs had been "tricked" into taking part in the trouble.

"I was with my girlfriend in Erdaowan Road when I saw the hordes of people," he recalled. "But I had this fleeting sensation that some demonstrators looked a bit sinister, they were covering their mouths as they talked on the phone and looked as though they were maneuvering and plotting something.

"Some just had blank eyes and raised their clenched fists or followed the others in shouting slogans, these were the common Uygur people."

He had a hunch something bad was about to happen so he led his girlfriend away from the crowds, sticking close to the police. They needed an escape.

"We walked 10 km in three hours before one of the fleeing cab drivers finally stopped to pick us up. He was Uygur and he saved our lives."