Xinjiang officials refute fallacy fabricated by anti-China forces

Lu Gaolin's granddaughter runs in a cotton field in Shawan City, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Oct. 24, 2021. Lu Gaolin, a cotton farmer, is 56 years old and lives in Shawan City of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.(Xinhua/Hu Huhu)

BEIJING, Dec. 6 (Xinhua) -- Representatives and officials from northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region denounced the fallacy fabricated by anti-China forces on Xinjiang's democratic developments, at a press conference held in Beijing Monday.

In Xinjiang, citizens of all ethnic groups enjoy the right to vote and stand for election equally, said Nabijan Ibrayim, a member of the legislative affairs commission of the Standing Committee of the 13th Xinjiang Regional People's Congress.

Representatives of the ethnic minority groups account for 62.3 percent of the region's total 61 deputies to the 13th National People's Congress (NPC). The 13th regional people's congress has 548 deputies, of whom 353 are from ethnic minorities, accounting for 64.42 percent.

Via a video link, Iminjan Zari, director of the region's civil affairs department, said a series of local regulations were formulated to ensure that grassroots democratic rights are fulfilled under legal protection. "During local elections, villagers of all ethnic groups have the right to vote, the right to know, and the right to participate."

Fifty-year-old Su Delin of the Hui ethnic group grew up in Miliangquan Village, Qapqal Xibe Autonomous County, and he is now head of the village. He said via a video link that village officials set up online chat groups, use loudspeakers, and put up posters to inform villagers of their rights and obligations and the process of elections.

"It has been proved that the democratic practices in Xinjiang are vivid expressions of the socialist democracy with Chinese characteristics. They provide a foundation for the people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang to work together for common prosperity and development," said Xu Guixiang, a spokesperson with the regional government.

The United States uses democracy and human rights as tools to attack others for their own political and hegemonic interests while holding a double standard, added Xu.