Leaked documents get distorted makeover

The uncontrollable self-satisfaction of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo while citing reports on some leaked documents about the Chinese government's policies in Xinjiang as testament to China's "systematic repression" of Uygurs, during his meeting with reporters at the State Department on Tuesday, indicates that Washington will not let pass any exploitable chance to splash dirty water on Beijing's practices in the region.

With the earliest report coming on Nov 16, that Pompeo waited another 10 days before throwing his weight behind the "hardcore" evidence had raised hopes that he might apply some critical thinking to the matter.

Regretfully, his remarks proved that the documents were nothing but a loudhailer for his preconceived conclusions about the situation in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

It is interesting that all reports on the documents which found their way to the Washington-based International Consortium of Investigative Journalists－whose record shows that it has a habit of investigating issues that Washington is keen to exploit－are based on some carefully selected details from the documents, which as a whole detail the daily operation instructions to staff of the vocational education and training centers that have been established in Xinjiang.

Details have been cherry-picked from the documents out of context, spiced up by comments of the reporters, who have done a good job in disguising the fact that what the documents reveal is the rather mundane details about how to ensure the good operation of the centers and protect the trainees' human rights.

The false and sensationalist impression given by the reports, however, is that the education and training centers are a tool used to "torture" the Uygurs. This is far removed from the reality that they are an effective education program tailor-made for anti-extremism and pro-stability in the region－something visitors to Xinjiang from home and abroad have confirmed.

The centers enable young Uygurs, who would otherwise be living in remote, isolated and poor regions, where they have proven to be susceptible to being brainwashed by religious fundamentalists, terrorists and separatists, to socialize with their peers and acquire an education and practical skills to make a living.

And the public security surveillance system in Xinjiang, which is portrayed as a tool of oppression, is, as such systems are elsewhere in the world, a guarantee for quick response in an emergency and a deterrent to evildoers. That such a comprehensive system is needed in the region speaks volumes about the potential threat it faces from terrorism.

Xinjiang's clean record of no violent attacks and dazzling record of economic growth and poverty alleviation since the anti-extremism measures were introduced proves they have been successful in pulling it back from the brink of becoming another source of global terrorism.

No matter how the US tries to exploit the documents, China will not alter its will to fight against terrorism in the most effective ways it can.