This ongoing project is continues at Uygur Autonomous Region in China. The region has a population of about 25 million, among whom 60 percent are ethnic minorities.
In an interview I studied, a member of Xinjiang Academy of Social Sciences, sociologist Turgunjan Tursun noted that the development programs focusing on market economy were creating a gap between better-educated and socially close Han and Uyghur peoples[1]. However, it is possible to see serious investments by the government that could help grow the economic prosperity and fair sharing of the wealth, which I think could significantly help close the gap noted by Tursun.
Nowadays, Chinese government and private investors make significant investments for the urban transformation, development and modernization of this region. The new public spaces, public housing and industrialization change considerably to the lifestyle in the region.
The main problem is about modernisation of urban and rural life. So, I want to determine the boundaries between the contemporary and traditional life-styles and also urban and rural life during this transformation.
Can the people of the region adapt to this situation? Maybe, it can be most important question.
[1]“Xinjiang’s Social Unrest Not Always Terrorism”, Tungunjan Tursun, Global Times, 26 Sep 2011
