Sinicisation: China remodels mosques by removing domes, minarets and Arabic calligraphy

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China has been removing domes, minarets and Arabic calligraphy from mosques in Xining to make it look more like a communist office than a mosque.

 

To make Chinese mosques look more Chinese, China has been removing Arab style from its mosques, which they named sinicisation.
The campaign is currently being carried out at Xining, the capital of Qinghai province and is home to Hui Muslims, who make 16 per cent of Xining's population.

Among 55 ethnic groups recognised by China, Hui Muslims are the third largest ethnic group and the largest Muslim community, with 10.5 million.

Unlike Uyghur Muslims, Hui Muslims are not persecuted, as their version of Islam is compatible with Chinese concepts and principles. The Hui Muslims Islam is portrayed as Chinese and not of foreign influence, and the community tries to look and act like Chinese.

Even after agreeing to the Communist party's rules, Beijing has been pushing for more Chinese and is targeting whatever represents their Islamic identity.

The 14th-century mosque has undergone a complete renovation and now looks like a communist office than a mosque as the dome accompanied by two tall minarets have been removed. Another mosque's domes, minarets and Arabic calligraphy have been replaced by Chinese text and architecture.

Xinjiang, the most militarised region in the country, has been the biggest victim of "sinicisation", and the entire region is cut off from the rest of the world. 

While 43 nations UN member nations issued a statement calling upon China to allow "immediate, meaningful and unfettered" access to Xinjiang, China has denied all the allegations and blamed the western nations for politicising it.

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