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Alcott Wei

China’s new law on ethnic unity signals a shift in Beijing’s focus from handling specific ethnic matters to assimilation, according to a party ethnologist.
The Law on Promoting Ethnic Unity and Progress, which took effect this month, provides a framework that analysts say is designed to counter Western ideological influence and provide a statutory mandate for assimilating minority groups.
However, it has triggered concerns from the United States and the European Union about forced assimilation and the potential for “extraterritorial application”.
An article about the law published in the Beijing Daily on Monday sought to clarify the fundamental transition in China’s ethnic policy.
“The enactment of the law means that the focus of China’s ethnic work is shifting from ‘transactional governance’ to ‘holistic governance’ focused on the building of the Chinese national community,” it said.
The article was written by Chen Shanshan, an ethnologist from the Central Party School, the training ground for China’s senior officials. The school also forms part of a nationwide system that President Xi Jinping considers key to the ideological purity of the Communist Party.
Chen wrote that “transactional governance” focused on the management and coordination of specific ethnic issues and relations, while community-building emphasised national and cultural identity, as well as shared values.
Beijing regards ethnic issues as a cornerstone for safeguarding China’s territorial integrity, development and stability.
Xi had called on the party to “forge a strong sense of community for the Chinese nation” in ethnic affairs and in ethnic minority regions, the article noted.
In effect since July 1, the law aims to link ethnic affairs with the “overall national security perspective” and stresses the role of patriotic education. It also demands accountability from “people and organisations that undermine ethnic unity and split the country”, including those overseas.
Additionally, it emphasises the promotion and use of standard Chinese as the national language, and warns that anyone who obstructs its use will face legal penalties.
In recent years, China’s Inner Mongolia autonomous region has introduced a series of controversial policies such as replacing Mongolian with Chinese for teaching core subjects in schools. It also put in place stricter regulations for Mongolian cultural and artistic expression.
Beijing has defended its approach, saying it sought to balance the preservation of minority identity with national integration to ensure stability, a message reaffirmed in the new ethnic unity law.
“In the past, ethnic assimilation work relied more on policy guidance, administrative promotion, model examples and accumulated practice,” Chen said in his article.
“Now that China has incorporated this principle into its system through legislation, it means that it has been elevated from a work requirement to a legal norm.
“[The law] essentially fixes in place the core concepts, basic principles and successful experience of ethnic work, so that it no longer mainly depends on the level of attention paid by certain localities or the intensity of promotion during certain periods.”


According to Chen, the law requires China to strengthen ties among all ethnic groups and establish a common economic development foundation.
Beijing’s approach to ethnic minority groups, especially those living in the autonomous regions of Tibet, Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia, has been closely watched by the international community.
Western countries have at various times accused China of carrying out cultural genocide, forced assimilation, forced intermarriage and arbitrary detention against ethnic minority groups – claims Beijing steadfastly denies.
The European Parliament in April adopted a resolution condemning China’s new ethnic unity law, saying it “intensifies institutionalised repression and assimilation of ethnic minority identities”.
Questioned on the matter, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said on July 3 that some countries chose to “maliciously smear China’s ethnic policies, and fabricate and spread false information”.
He said: “The Chinese government has always focused on protecting the cultures of ethnic minorities, and protects in accordance with the law the right of all ethnic groups to use and develop their languages.”


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Why China’s ethnic unity law marks shift in policy towards assimilation

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Ethnic minority delegates leave a plenary session of the National People’s Congress (NPC) held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Monday. Photo: AP

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China

Politics

The law has been criticised by the EU and US, but Beijing says it is designed to build a sense of ‘national community’


The law has been criticised by the EU and US, but Beijing says it is designed to build a sense of ‘national community’.


Tibet

Xinjiang

Guo Jiakun

Why China’s ethnic unity law marks shift in policy towards assimilation

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}The law has been criticised by the EU and US, but Beijing says it is designed to build a sense of ‘national community’

The law has been criticised by the EU and US, but Beijing says it is designed to build a sense of ‘national community’