The New Dominion

This week, Xinjiang saw a noble wild camel rescue operation, the unearthing of 2400 year-old wheat stalks, the temporary closure of Urumqi International Airport due to heavy fog, a flurry of end-of-the-year statistics, and more, under the break.

Xinhua Network News Xinjiang Channel 新华网新疆频道

• 9 December 2007: Xinjiang will hopefully have two new national-level geographical parks in the near future. Tuomuer Canyon in Wensu County and Tianshan Canyon in Kuche County, both of Aksu prefecture, recently were submitted to the National Resources Department as potential National Park Candidates. Representatives from the NRD investigated both sites at the end of October and a ruling on the status of the two parks is expected to be announced shortly.

• 9 December 2007: Over 16 million yuan will be invested for the protection and preservation of the Silk Road’s oldest military installation, the Keziergaha Watchtower, as well as nearby grottoes containing Buddhist frescoes. The Keziergaha Watchtower (whose name is ancient Turkic for “Red Checkpoint”) was built sometime during the Han Dynasty and was part of a network of towers that stretched all the way to Changan. The nearby Buddhist grottoes were constructed sometime in the 5th century. The investment will go into protection projects such as a workstation, weather monitoring equipment, and restoration work.

• 10 December 2007: Epic rescue operations have been carried out to rescue a crippled camel discovered by a research expedition in the Lop Nur Wild Camel Reserve on the 1st of December. After tracking the injured camel for several days, food, salt, and antibiotics were brought out to the camel on the 7th; on the 8th, a crew ventured into the wild and with the help of tranquilizers this crew managed to load the camel into a truck, by which it was brought to a veterinary clinic in Ruoqiang. Treatment was given to the wild camel in Ruoqiang until arrangements were made to transport the camel to the Tianshan Wildlife Reserve center for more extensive treatment.

• 11 December 2007: According to the National Statistics Bureau’s Xinjiang Investigation Team, the consumer price index rose 9.7% over the month of November. Prices for consumer goods continue rising.

• 11 December 2007: During a highway building project, construction workers unearthed a cemetery whose contents include 2400 year old wheat stalks that still maintain a golden hue. The wheat is projected to have been buried sometime around the Warring States period or the Qin dynasty, and strongly imply that at the time the Turpan basin had a highly developed wheat agricultural base.

• 11 December 2007: Two days of continuous fog caused the delay or cancellation of over 200 flights at Urumqi International Airport. The fog reduced visibility to 200 meters, below acceptable operating standards. The fog departed on the 10th and normal operations were reinstated at around 12:30.

• 12 December 2007: The regional output value of the XUAR increased 12% over the last year, which is a new high when compared to the economic performance of the last 12 years. Following this general economic growth, average yearly disposable income for residents of cities and townships surpassed the 10 thousand yuan benchmark and monthly income for rural areas surpassed 3000 yuan. An employee of the regional statistics bureau warned that although industries are improving across the board and incomes are rising, Xinjiang still faces rising prices and widespread sanitation problems in the food production industry.

• 12 December 2007: The National Power Grid Corporation has invested 2.1 billion yuan into the construction of power converting stations and coal mines in the eastern part of the Junggar Basin, where an estimated 370 billion tons of coal await extraction. Xinjiang is playing an increasingly important role in China’s energy infrastructure as the demand for more energy resources rises with China’s prospering economy.

• 12 December 2007: This year, 200 thousand high school graduates did not continue on to higher education. The regional government intends to see the silver lining of this situation by mobilizing massive integrated vocational education programs to provide high school graduates with occupational skills useful to Xinjiang’s burgeoning industries.

• 12 December 2007: Officers with the Railway Police recently shutdown a counterfeit train ticket operation in Urumqi. A railway worker discovered a passenger with a fake ticket on the 8th, which triggered investigations. Soon after, two more passengers were found with fake tickets and after examination, all three tickets were judged as coming from the same source. Further investigations lead police to Urumqi’s Midong New Neighborhood, where two suspects were arrested and over 20 thousand yuan worth of fake tickets were confiscated.

• 13 December 2007: In an ironic twist to the well-known bystander effect, two brave gentlemen did respond to the pleas of help coming from a damsel being mugged by two thugs… but after the two thugs were subdued and brought to the local police station, the victim was nowhere to be found, this providing no legal basis whatsoever to set up a case against the two muggers, especially after the muggers began making counter-accusations against the two vigilantes, saying they were the innocent, assaulted victims. After hearing calls for help while walking back to his unit, PLA soldier Nueraili dashed to the rescue and took down two robbers who were in the process of chasing a woman down the street. Eventually the three of them fell to the ground in a scuffle, whereupon the victim and another woman started shouting for someone to help the outnumbered Nueraili. Another upstanding citizen, Zhang Junxin, joined the fray and eventually the two heroes were able to overcome the criminals and bring them to the local police station. Unfortunately, since the two witnesses left, there was no way for officers to establish a criminal case and investigation, and now Nueraili and Zhang Junxin are facing accusations of assault by the foiled criminals. In order to “carry out justice,” the police stations have begun a publicity campaign on behalf of the two vigilantes, urging the two witnesses to come forward to resolve the case.

• 13 December 2007: Since its inauguration in 2005, the “Sunshine Project” has provided around 6000 farmers and herders with occupational skills. As part of the ongoing effort to provide rural residents with the skills necessary to make a decent living in modernizing Xinjiang, the “Sunshine Project” offers vocational training in a number of fields, including electric work, computers, culinary arts, weaving, farm equipment repair, driving, and tourism service.

• 13 December 2007: The regional Health Department has released statistics regarding epidemic diseases in Xinjiang for the month of November. There are currently 13976 cases of “Type B” diseases in Xinjiang, an increase of 19.89% when compared to the same time period last year. Type B diseases include hepatitis A, measles, whooping cough, and mumps. Experts ascribe last month’s increase to both the arrival of these diseases’ “high season” and a lack of adequate sanitary conditions in schools and neighborhoods.

• 13 December 2007: The fifth meeting of the seventh regional party committee was held in Urumqi on the 11th and the 12th, with Regional Party Secretary Wang Lequan and Regional Chairman Ismail Tiliwaldi making summarizing statements. The rhetorical focus of the meeting was the start of a “new history” for Xinjiang, a time of unprecedented opportunities whose advantages should be reaped to the fullest extent.

• 13 December 2007: Total cotton production for Xinjiang, China’s largest cotton base, is expected to reach 2.7 million tons by the end of the year, setting yet another annual record.

• 13 December 2007: A comprehensive 20-year plan for the restoration and renovation of the Tomb of Abakh Khoja (or the Tomb of the Fragrant Concubine) and the Id Kah mosque has been submitted to the local government for examination and approval. The first phase of this long term plan consists of reinforcing the foundations of both structures and implementing fire prevention and earthquake-resistant engineering projects on the buildings and the surrounding neighborhoods. One sentence in the Xinhua article also notes that structures near these cultural sites deemed “detrimental” to their preservation will be demolished as a part of this plan.

• 13 December 2007: The Flying Tigers are maintaining their historical winning streak now that they have played every team once and are now facing CBA opponents for the second time in the season. The Flying Tigers defeated Shaanxi, Jilin, and Liaoning once more in three away games, then defeated Shandong at home on the 9th. Tension mounted on the days leading up to the Flying Tigers’ epic showdown with their season rival, the Jiangsu Dragons, who defeated the Flying Tigers in Jiangsu on the 7th of November. This time, however, the Flying Tigers won, 108-90, bestowing the nickname of “Devil Court” on their Urumqi stadium, seeing that they have yet to see a loss on their home turf.

• 14 December 2007: The second stage of the China-Kazakhstan pipeline has officially begun. The second stage is expected to reach completion on 1 October 2009 and will stretch from Kenjiyake to Kumkol, which both are located within Kazakhstan. Eventually the pipeline will reach the port of Alashankou on the Chinese side of the Kazakh-Chinese border, where crude oil can be delivered to China’s internal pipeline system. Upon completion, this pipeline is expected to deliver 20 million tons annually from the Caspian Sea to the PRC.
• 14 December 2007: The fifth XPCC Party Committee held its 10th meeting on the 13th, during which the XPCC secretary Nie Weiguo outlined the goals of the XPCC for the upcoming years. The XPCC’s lofty goals include studying and implementing the spirit of the 17th National People’s Congress, intensifying the opening and reform policies, continue generating new systems and ideas to implement XPCC policies, accelerate economic structural adjustments, build up the “three agricultural bases” and the “main six industries,” push forward the “new industrialization,” modernize agriculture and continue urbanization so as to improve lives and promote social harmony, and to make the XPCC a model unit in constructing an affluent society in China’s northwest. Piece of cake.
• 14 December 2007: The 2007-2008 Xinjiang Economic and Social Situation Analysis and Forecast Bluebook has been released by the Xinjiang Social Sciences Institute. The Bluebook predicts that over the following year, Xinjiang’s GDP will increase by 11.65%, and that consumer prices will increase by 4%, particularly in the upcoming 9 months where increases will be solidly above the national average. Foodstuffs are expected to see a particularly high rise of 9.1%. The combined GDP of the Urumqi-Changji area will account for 1/3 of Xinjiang’s total GDP and generate over 40% of the region’s fiscal revenue, solidly pinning it as the region’s economic center and powerhouse. The Bluebook also forecasts detrimental imbalances in water resource management, Xinjiang’s transportation system, and comparative economic development between North and South Xinjiang, as well as an increase in regional income disparities.
• 14 December 2007: XUAR Chairman Ismail Tiliwaldi announced that this year’s total crude oil production is expected to hit 26 million tons, a 5.5% increase compared with last year’s crude oil production. Xinjiang thus remains the top oil producer in China for the 18th consecutive year.
• 15 December 2007: Starting from next year, Turpan’s Astana tombs will have a comprehensive “early warning system” to prevent grave robbers from looting the site. The Regional Cultural Artificats Protection Committee invested 4.85 million yuan for the Astana Tomb Security Program, which officially began construction work in the past few days. The system is expected to be completed by April 2008 and will include intruder detection systems, closed circuit TV monitoring systems, and an accompanying control center. The article sets aside a special paragraph to point out the precedent of tomb pillaging set by European and Japanese explorers in the 19th century.

Other News

• 10 December 2007: Dominic Barton at the Financial Times contends that the infrastructure for a new industrial Silk Road has been laid over the past several years; Xinjiang of course represents one of this new trade route’s most important hubs.
• 10 December 2007: China View runs an English language version of the Xinhua article describing delays at the Urumqi airport caused by heavy fog.

Blogs

• 14 December 2007: Michael discusses some statistics he found regarding Chinese name length and Xinjiang.
• 15 December 2007: The KSA Daily makes some observations about the paucity of literature on the Uyghur language, which ironically makes the pool of authors quite accessible to those in Xinjiang.

Tags: annual statistics, basketball, CBA, coal, cotton, crime, cultural sites, diseases, economy, education, energy, growth, Ismail Tiliwaldi, kazakhstan, mandarin, national parks, oil, pipelines, prices, statistics, the silk road, transportation, uyghur language, Wang Lequan, wildlife, XPCC