Job discrimination riles China's Uighurs

URUMQI, China — Tursun's eyes well up as she describes life as a Uighur in China, which she says is marred by overt discrimination in the job market -- a source of much bitterness in the restive city of Urumqi."There are so many young Uighurs here who have been abroad, who speak perfect English, perfect Japanese," the shopkeeper says in the violence-scarred capital of far-western Xinjiang region."But they can't find good jobs despite that," she says, gesturing to rows of market stalls and the vendors minding them."I've been for many job interviews here but they wouldn't hire me because I'm a Uighur."Many Uighurs in Xinjiang complain about what they say is a job market openly skewed against them, with many of the better-paid professional and technical jobs going to members of the country's Han Chinese majority.That resentment boiled over on July 5 last year, when some mainly Muslim Uighurs took to the streets of Urumqi in a protest that descended into violence against the Han Chinese. Han mobs then sought revenge in the following days.The government said the unrest -- the worst ethnic clashes in China for decades -- left nearly 200 dead and 1,700 injured. So far, 26 people have been sentenced to death for their roles in the mayhem.Tursun, who asked that her real name be withheld out of fear of reprisals, maintains a steely stare as tears begin to roll down her cheeks."They bully us," she whispers, as outside, in Urumqi's Uighur quarter, security forces wielding shields and batons march dozens at a time and police patrol on motorbikes and in vans for Monday's first anniversary of the unrest.Analysts say a government policy of transferring Han Chinese to Xinjiang to consolidate Beijing's authority has increased the proportion of Han in the region from five percent in the 1940s to more than 40 percent now.Many Han Chinese have better education and qualifications, and crucially a better grasp of Mandarin than the Uighurs -- all of which gives them a better shot at the best jobs.According to Dru Gladney, an exp

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