On August 14, Turkish journalist Erdal Emre shared his reflections on a recent media tour of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in northwest China.
“Our #Xinjiang trip with journalist friends from eight media outlets has ended. It was a trip where we learned a lot. We will write about our impressions. We express our sincere gratitude to our colleagues in China for their hospitality,” Emre wrote on the social media platform X on Wednesday (8/14).
Emre was part of a group of 11 Turkish journalists who participated in “Media Trip in Xinjiang: Always More to Discover,” a tour co-sponsored by Guangming Online and the Xinjiang Virtual World Affairs Commission. The tour lasted for nine days.
The tour visited a number of cities, including Urumqi, Ili, Aksu and Kashgar, cities in northern and southern Xinjiang, and the journalists were closely monitored by Chinese authorities.
Guangming Online, the digital arm of Guangming Daily state-controlled, operating under the direction of the Chinese Communist Party. The Xinjiang Cyberspace Affairs Commission, a regional government department, is responsible for overseeing internet censorship and managing online content in Xinjiang.
Guangming Daily reported that the initiative aims to “clearly demonstrate the beautiful Xinjiang” which is characterized by “unity, harmony, prosperity, progress, security and ecological well-being.”
Zhang Jun, director of the Xinjiang Cyberspace Affairs Commission, said in a news report that the goal was to counter criticism and promote a positive image of the region.
“We hope that everyone will understand Xinjiang by seeing it with their own eyes, telling the story of Xinjiang in different languages, and sharing the real Xinjiang with the world,” Zhang said in the report.
China’s efforts to accommodate international journalists in Xinjiang are part of its response to allegations of serious human rights abuses. The allegations include mass detentions, which the United States has called genocide and the United Nations has called crimes against humanity. Reports have suggested that Uighurs and other Turkic Muslims face forced indoctrination, abuse, forced labor and sterilization in the facilities.
The strategy is in line with Chinese President Xi Jinping’s directive from July 2022 to step up external propaganda efforts. Xi stressed the importance of using multiple platforms to “tell the story of Xinjiang” and present the region in a favorable light, and advocated a multifaceted approach to enhance China’s global influence and shape perceptions of Xinjiang.
According to Abdürreşit Celil Karluk, professor of international relations at Ankara Hacı Bayram Veli University and visiting fellow at the University of Sheffield’s School of East Asian Studies, China is strategically spending money to influence Turkish public opinion through media channels.
The campaign targets a country that is home to one of the world’s largest and most politically active Uighur diasporas. Human rights groups estimate there are 50,000 to 75,000 Uighurs living in Turkey. (about/after)
