China Shot 12: Don't Worry, They're "Mobsters"

So much depends on who you listen to, or read: On CNN, it's Uyghur rioters. Reuters calls the the people in western China Uighurs. The official Chinese news says that their security people killed 12 "mobsters:" and doesn't say whether they're of the (majority) Han, or (minority in the rest of China) Uighur variety.

Not to worry, though. China Daily reports that China's leaders are handling the situation just fine:

"The Chinese government and the Communist Party of China (CPC) handled the July 5 riot in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region 'decisively and properly', said a senior CPC official on Friday in Beijing.

" 'The CPC and the government has always advocated social stability, the socialist legal system, and national unity, as well as the interests of the people,' said He Guoqiang, a member of the Standing Committee of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau, according to Xinhua...." (China Daily)

"Social stability." "National unity." "Interests of the people." All that sounds good. Twelve bodies on the ground, not so good.

It's not the same players on the opposition side, but this situation reminds me a little of the Tiananmen Square confrontations, back when. And that time when national unity was achieved the hard way, in the War Between the States, here in North America.

Related posts:

• "Uighur Riot? Revolt? Foreign Separatists? Depends on What You Read"
  (July 10, 2009)
• "Cyber-Attack Started July Fourth: Common Sense, Security, and the War on Terror"
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• "A Reporter Escapes the Taliban, Monks Escape China"
  (June 20, 2009)
• "Tiananmen Square Commemoration in Hong Kong: No Tanks"
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• "Tiananmen Square 20th Anniversary: A Losing Battle for Traditional Information Gatekeepers"
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• "Pentagon Computers Hacked - Joint Strike Fighter Project Data This Time"
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• "Chinese Anti-Carrier Missile: Cause for Concern"
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• "Cyberspy Network Hacked 103 Countries' Systems"
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• "Tibet: Fifty Years of Chinese Liberation, and Counting"
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• "The New York Times Banned in China"
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• "Worm Spreading Fast in Pentagon Computers: (not) in the News"
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• "Pentagon Hacked, Removable Media Banned: Cyberattack Hits American Military"
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• "White House Computers Hacked, Probably by China: News That's Not Fit to Print?"
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• "Remember Melamine? It's Baaaack!"
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• "Melamine,China, the 2008 Olympics, and Transparency"
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• "Liu Xiang and the 2008 Olympics: There's Something to Learn Here"
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• "Forget the Olympics For Now: China's Secret Submarine Base is Serious"
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• "China's Military: This Can't Safely be Ignored"
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• "The War on Terror? This May be
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• "Tibet: A Preview of Coming Attractions?"
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• "China: Toxic Toys and Dubious Dumplings Aren't Signs of Terrorism"
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• "It's Not Both Sides: It's All Sides"
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In the news:

• "Uighurs in Kazakhstan rally against China crackdown"
  Reuters (July 19, 2009)
• "China says police killed 12 in Uyghur riots"
  CNN (July 19, 2009)
• "Urumqi riot handled 'decisively, properly' "
  China Daily (July 18, 2009)