Diplomats From 12 Countries Including Pakistan Visit Xinjiang Vocational Training Centers

Diplomats from 12 countries including Pakistan, who visited vocational education and training centers in China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, said the province was seeking an effective way to counter extremism and terrorism

BEIJING, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 9th Jan, 2019 ) :Diplomats from 12 countries including Pakistan, who visited vocational education and training centers in China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, said the province was seeking an effective way to counter extremism and terrorism.

At the invitation of the Xinjiang government, diplomats from Pakistan, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Afghanistan, Thailand and Kuwait recently visited Xinjiang, according to Global Times here on Wednesday.

These diplomats visited the vocational training and education centers in Kashi, where trainees were learning Putonghua, national laws and regulations, and vocational skills.

Diplomats asked about the life of the trainees in the centers, played ping-pong and basketball with them on the playground, and watched a singing and dancing performance of the trainees.

In the Grand Bazaar of Urumqi, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, deputy head of mission from the Pakistan Embassy in China, said Xinjiang's cultural vitality and people's hospitality had impressed her deeply.

She met a Pakistani businessman, Asmu, who sells jewelry in the bazaar who told the diplomat that society in Xinjiang has become more stable in recent years, and his business is booming with more tourists coming to Xinjiang.

"I live in Urumqi now and married to a Uyghur girl. And we have children now. We are leading a happy life!" Asmu said.

Indonesian Ambassador to China Djauhari Oratmangun said that the education centers in Xinjiang have impressed him and trainees can learn national laws and the Uyghur culture.

He said that trainees seemed to be in good spirits. He hoped they could learn more vocational skills and become useful people in society.

During their visit to the education center in Hotan, the diplomat from Kazakhstan received a New Year gift. A trainee, Mehmet Isamati gave an oil painting to the diplomat.

The diplomat said that he noticed that the Chinese government and regional government in Xinjiang have created good conditions for trainees and they have rich food as well as time for sports.

Sayed, the diplomat from the Afghanistan Embassy in China, who had visited Xinjiang many times, was surprised to find during this visit that residents in southern Xinjiang, who used to idle around, now are busy studying and working, which is a good phenomenon.

He said that training for vocational skills would help enhance many people's lives and what he witnessed in Xinjiang, is opposite to many reports of the Western media.

Every country has employment problem and de-extremism problem. China's Xinjiang is seeking an effective way to deal with these issues, which other countries can learn from, he said.

Aside from visiting the education centers, diplomats also visited the Grand Bazaar in Urumqi and the Islamic Institute in Xinjiang.

During their visit to China's largest mosque, the Id Kah Mosque in Kashi, the diplomats learned that the mosque has installed heating equipment, and facilities for believers to wash their hands, and it offers drinking water.

The diplomat from the Malaysian Embassy in China said that he deemed the Chinese government's efforts in protecting religious freedom and religious groups, have a place for religious activities.

Like other countries, religious activities have been protected in China, he added.

The visit to Xinjiang has given him a new chance to know the place and the reports from some Western media on Xinjiang were false, the diplomat said.

Meanwhile, according to a report of media website China.org.cn, the diplomatic envoys visited local markets, farmers, educational institutes, mosques, factories, as well as vocational education and training centers.

Throughout the trip, they interacted with local vendors, students, and workers in Xinjiang and learned about the region's progress in maintaining social stability, improving people's livelihood and developing local economy.

They said they expected to cooperate with China's Xinjiang in the fields of culture, tourism, economy and trade.

At the Xinjiang Islamic Institute, which offers three-year bachelor programs and religious training, Ambassador of Kuwait to China Sameeh Johar Hayat encouraged the students to learn more and contribute what they learn to the development of their country.

In Kashgar, the diplomatic envoys also visited a local economic development zone. Upon seeing the wide variety of imported products from Europe, Central Asia, and Southeast Asia in the zone, Piriya Khempon, ambassador of Thailand to China, said the trip had deepened his understanding of the Belt and Road Initiative, which he said is very important to Kashgar's development.

Khempon said he believed the city is bound to become a lot better in the coming years thanks to its geographical advantage.

The diplomatic envoys also visited Id Kah Mosque in Kashgar, the largest mosque in Xinjiang, and were briefed on the mosque and its facility improvements.

Mohammed Hosnie Shahiran Ismail, Counselor of the Malaysian Embassy in China, said, through the tour, he sees that the Chinese government attaches great importance to religious freedom, and religious activities are protected by the state.

The trip refreshed his understanding of Xinjiang, he said, adding the region is different from what Western media has portrayed.

At a vocational education and training center in Kashgar, students study ethnic instruments, calligraphy, painting, law, and many other skills.

The envoys asked in detail about the students' life in the center and played ping pong and basketball with them.

Ambassador of Indonesia to China Djauhari Oratmangun said the school had left a great impression on him and that students learn not only about law and skills, but also their own culture.

At another vocational training center in Hotan, Kabaziyev Manarbek, Counselor of the Kazakhstan Embassy in China, received an oil painting, created by a student who has studied art for half a year in the center, as a New Year gift.

Manarbek said students master vocational skills here through training and make a living with these skills later in life; it shows that the Chinese government truly cares about these trainees.

The envoys also visited a clothing factory in Hotan, where villagers who have received training work on the assembly lines. According to the factory owner, they receive a monthly salary of more than 3,000 Yuan (438 U.S. Dollars).