Abulat Abdurxit, chairman of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and a deputy to the National People's Congress (NPC), the country's top legislature, said the political and economic situation in Xinjiang is stable in general, and the people of all nationalities in the region are opposed to splittism.

"The regional government of Xinjiang is carrying out publicity campaigns on the unity of the country and all nationalities while cracking down hard on those engaged in separatist activities according to law."

His views were echoed by Adili Usur and Hazi Amat, both NPC deputies from Xinjiang, who are here for the on-going annual NPC session.

Adili Usur, an acrobat, added that an increasing number of people in Xinjiang have been aware of the importance in opposing separatism, strengthening national unity and maintaining stability. "It is the hope of the people to continue improving their living standards in a stable environment," he said, adding " without stability, Xinjiang can not attract investment from outside to promote economic development."

Hazi Amat, an artist who has been engaged in art education for more than 40 years, said it is only a small handful of people who are engaged in separatist activities, and most of them belong to religious extremist forces.

"The majority of religious believers in Xinjiang are kind- hearted. They pray for peace and stability and oppose separatism."

He said a small handful of people, who are supported by foreign anti-China forces and use words from the Koran out of context, are engaged in murder, explosion and other terrorist activities.

Their activities are extremely unpopular among the people in Xinjiang, who support the policies of the central authorities to maintain stability in the region, he said.

(People's Daily March 11, 2002)