Islam as decolonial re-existence vs. PRC institutionalized Islamophobia

Abstract

The Uyghur population is mired in constant conflict with the authorities of the Chinese central government. This is due to the participation of part of the population –especially younger people- in local organizations associated with Islamic terrorism and often-violent activities that these groups perform against the State. Islam (such as laws, customs, and demonstrations) is the element that the PRC instrumentally employs in legitimating its violent and restrictive policies against the Uyghur people, in order to maintain its power over the territory and its natural resources. This is also done while publicly presenting the measures as “War on Terror” and “Modernization” of the Uyghur Autonomous Region of Xinjiang. In the framework of decolonial studies, this research provides a detailed overview of the current religious colonialism of the PRC, and how religion and “War on Terror” became State tools of political repression. On the other hand, it aims to present Uyghurs’ territorial religious manifestations as one re-existence instrument, in opposition to the epistemicides that Beijing is committing.