China’s ethnic affairs officials urged to promote integration of minority groups

Senior ethnic affairs policy directors gather for meeting to outline goals for this year
The objectives include addressing ‘hidden dangers’ and launching cultural initiatives that ‘reflect the commonality of the Chinese nation’

China’s Communist Party

Vanessa Caiin Shanghai

Published: 7:37pm, 24 Jan 2024

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China’s ethnic affairs officials have been asked to boost efforts to promote the integration of the country’s ethnic minority groups in the new year.

The Tuesday meeting brought together senior ethnic affairs policy directors from around the country and outlined goals for China’s ethnic affairs policies.

Beijing has stressed the need to enforce President Xi Jinping’s vision of “forging a sense of community of the Chinese nation”, which calls for greater integration of ethnic minority groups.

The meeting noted that efforts should be made to “build a system of historical materials, a system of discourse and a system of theories on the community of the Chinese nation” and to “scientifically reveal the reasons, theories and philosophies of the formation and development of the Chinese nation”.

It called for efforts to launch cultural products and exhibits that “reflect the commonality of the Chinese nation” to “fully demonstrate Chinese cultural heritage”.

It also outlined the goal of addressing risks and “hidden dangers” in the field of ethnic affairs and safeguarding ethnic unity and stability.

The meeting noted that ethnic affairs offices across China should “have a sense of responsibility and urgency” and “thoroughly implement” the latest decisions by Communist Party leaders on ethnic affairs.

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Ethnic grievances were once a major source of tension in Chinese society, especially in Tibet and Xinjiang. Beijing has largely brought down the intensity of those tensions in recent years, but has been widely criticised for the security and cultural policies that were used during the process.

At a Politburo study session in October, President Xi Jinping noted the need to promote the party’s work in guiding ethnic minority groups. He emphasised the importance of educating ethnic minority groups about party history, theories and policies and to further integrate them into the Chinese nation.

“Efforts should be made to let people cultivate awareness that people from all ethnicities are in the same community, where they share weal and woe and stick together through thick and thin,” he was quoted as saying at the time by state news agency Xinhua.

In Tuesday’s meeting, Pan Yue, party chief of the National Ethnic Affairs Commission, said efforts should be made “to open up a brand new situation of high-quality development of the party’s work on ethnic affairs in the new era”.

The commission is responsible for drafting laws regarding China’s policies towards its ethnic minority groups as well as implementing those laws and regulations.

Pan is also a deputy head of the United Front Work Department, the body responsible for liaising with non-party groups, overseeing the country’s ethnic and religious issues and overseas Chinese affairs.

The Tuesday meeting also called for efforts to make economic development “a process of forging a sense of community of the Chinese nation”.

It also emphasised “strengthening the party’s centralised and unified leadership on ethnic affairs” to promote “strong synergy for the party’s work on ethnic affairs in the new era”.