MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on the situation and cultural heritage in Kashgar (Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China)
8.3.2011
pursuant to Rule 122 of the Rules of Procedure
Tunne Kelam, László Tőkés, Mario Mauro, Cristian Dan Preda, Bernd Posselt, Bogusław Sonik, Filip Kaczmarek, Csaba Sógor, Eija-Riitta Korhola, Elena Băsescu, Sari Essayah, Monica Luisa Macovei, Kinga Gál on behalf of the PPE Group
See also joint motion for a resolution RC-B7-0168/2011
B7‑0183/2011
European Parliament resolution on the situation and cultural heritage in Kashgar (Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China)
The European Parliament,
- having regard to previous resolutions on China notably those concerning human rights and minority rights, and in particular those of 26 November 2009 and 24 November 2010,
- having regard to the 13th EU-China Summit of October 2010, in Brussels, Belgium, which included the first EU-China High Level Cultural Forum aimed at strengthening the EU-China cultural dialogue and cooperation
- having regard to the UN Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities, adopted by General Assembly resolution 47/135 of 18 December 1992, which stipulates that ‘[s]tates shall protect the existence and the national or ethnic, cultural, religious and linguistic identity of minorities within their respective territories’,
- having regard in particular to Articles 4, 22 and 119 of the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China, which provide, respectively, governmental assistance in the cultural development of regions inhabited by minority nationalities , state protection of valuable cultural monuments and relics, and protection of the cultural legacy of the nationalities,
- having regard to Rule 122(5) of its Rules of Procedure,
A. whereas in 2009 the Chinese government announced a $500 million "Kashgar Dangerous House Reform, (KDHR)" an urban reconstruction programme which, since 2009 has been progressively destroying the ancient Silk Road city of Kashgar with the plan to demolish 85 % of the traditional Old City, replacing it with modern apartment blocks, and converting the remaining old parts of the city into a mixed Sino-Uyghur tourist sites,
B. whereas this plan of urban reform will move residents, some temporarily and others permanently, from "an old environment" to new modern compounds which on one side will offer salubrity and more confort to the residents but on the other side will increase the split and separation of their cultural identity,
C. whereas Beijing continues to exclude the city of Kashgar from bids for UNESCO world heritage status such as the planned transnational application to achieve the protection of several cultural sites on Central Asia’s Silk Road,
D. whereas the city of Kashgar is an internationally significant site of unique architectural and cultural heritage with historical and geographical importance being an ancient centre of trade and communication for different populations along the Silk Road;
E. whereas the city of Kashgar retains a highly symbolic value for the cultural identity of the region’s Uyghur population (44% of the total population of XUAR), and in particular represents the local old settlement of the Uighur ethnic population with the populations of Tajik, Kyrgyz and Uzbek origin all representatives of the 47 ethnicities of this Region which gives an everlasting momentum to China’s cultural diversity,
F. whereas the reconstruction programme’s official justification of earthquake fortification does not necessitate complete demolition of traditional buildings with other options such as culturally sensitive renovations,
G. whereas Beijing has engaged in similarly destructive housing modernisation in other parts of China through its various local "Development Plans", which demolish historic buildings and forcibly resettle residents without considering the loss of priceless historical and cultural heritage and without giving priority to the preservation-in protected areas or in Museum- of the relics or principal building artifacts and architecture in order to transmit to the future generations and to the World samples of the thousands years of Chinese historical and cultural developments,
H. whereas Beijing is implementing repressive ethno cultural policies in some areas of XUAR, which reached a grim peak during the violent crackdown on Uyghur protesters in 2009’s Urumqi unrest,
1. calls on the Chinese government to immediately stop the cultural destruction threatening Kashgar’s architectural survival and to implement a comprehensive expert inquiry into culture-sensitive methods of renovation,
2. calls on the Chinese government to terminate all forced resettlement and social marginalization of Kashgar’s Uyghur population, which is caused by the destruction of residential areas, and to adequately compensate all previous victims for the losses suffered,
3. urges the Chinese government to adhere to its constitutional obligations by adequately supporting Kashgar’s and XUAR's cultural traditions, which are strongly influenced by the Uyghur identity,
4. urges the Chinese government to assess the possibility of including the city of Kashgar in the join application, together with Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan for the Silk Road's UNESCO World Heritage designation,
5. calls on the Chinese Authorities to avoid at any price the letting of Kashgar Old City's areas (following the "KDHR") to shameless developers who might build up huge shopping malls nearby what will remain of the Uyghur living culture, after the urban reconstruction plan is developed,
6. calls on the Chinese Minister of Culture to review the existing regulation and law on the protection of cultural relics in order to adapt the current changing lifestyle of the minority ethnic group that sometimes, unaware of their treasures, make inappropriate use or decline the protection of their cultural heritage; as such, an education campaign at national level on this issue should be promoted;
7. calls on the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and on the relevant Chinese People's Political Consultative Committee to suggest projects to the coming Spring Session of the NPC, to discuss a common sustainable development platform for the re -urbanisation of Old Chinese Historical Cities to be used as a base guideline framework of suggestions /recommendations to be presented at the next 2012 CCP Congress in order to avoid future disaggregation of policies in the safeguard of historical sites, threatened by current economic globalisation and urbanisation,
8. calls on the Chinese Authorities to deploy more measures to hamper illegal trade and smuggling activities which contribute to the loss of Chinese civilisations' heritage,
9. calls on the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) to address China's Authorities with contributions and recommendations on the management of the Urban Historic Landscape, taking also as example Chinese domestic expertise so well demonstrated to the world during the Shanghai Expo in its Urban Thematic Pavillon,
10. calls on the European External Action Service to devise additional measures in the context of the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights, to protect the human and cultural rights of China’s ethnic, religious and linguistic minority groups,
11. calls on EU representatives and the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy to increase and intensify talks about human rights and minority rights with the People’s Republic of China,
12. instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, the United Nations Human Rights Council, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, the National People’s Congress and its Standing Committee of the Peoples Republic of China and the Regional Party Standing Committee of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.