I. Terrorist
activities committed by “Eastern Turkistan”
elements in and outside the Chinese territory
The
“Eastern Turkistan” force has a total of over 40
organizations. They have engaged themselves in
terrorist violence to varying degrees, both overtly and
covertly. Among these organizations, eight openly
advocate violence in their political platforms.
They are: “Eastern Turkistan Islamic
Resistance Movement” in Turkey; “Eastern
Turkistan Liberation Organization”, “Eastern
Turkistan International Committee”, “United
Committee of Uygurs’ Organizations” in central
Asia, and “Central Asian Uygur Hezbollah” in
Kazakhstan; “Turkistan Party” in Pakistan;
“Eastern Turkistan Islamic Movement” in
Afghanistan; and “Eastern Turkistan Youth
League” in Switzerland.
1) Incidents of
terrorist violence perpetrated by “Eastern
Turkistan” elements over the past ten years in the
Chinese territory mainly include:
On 5 April 1990,
they killed and injured more than 100 civilians and soldiers
in Barin Township of Kizilsu Kirgiz Autonomous
Prefecture;
On 5 February 1991, the “Islamic
Reformist Party” masterminded a bus explosion in
Urumqi, killing and injuring over 20 people;
Between
June and September 1993, the “Eastern Turkistan
Democratic Islamic Party” carried out a series of
bombings in southern Xinjiang, which led to more than deaths
and injuries;
On 15 July 1996, the “Eastern
Turkistan Islamic Justice Party” engineered a prison
rebellion in Xayar County, killing 15 people and a riot in
Yining on 5 February 1997, which resulted in over 300
casualties;
On 25 February 1997, the “Eastern
Turkistan National Solidarity Union” staged a
horrendous bomb explosion incident in Urumqi which involved
nearly 100 casualties and in early 1998 the same group was
responsible for 25 poisoning cases in southern Xinjiang,
where over 40 people fell victim and four died;
In
January 2001, Akbelbek Timur, an “Eastern
Turkistan” terrorist who is now in custody, bought
explosives in Kazakhstan and smuggled them into Xinjiang for
attempted terrorist activities.
2) Incidents of
terrorist violence’s committed by “Eastern
Turkistan” elements in recent years outside China
mainly include:
In February 1997, “Eastern
Turkistan” terrorists opened fire on the Chinese
Embassy in Turkey, assaulted the Chinese Consulate-General
in Istanbul and burned Chinese national flags;
On 5
March 1998, terrorists of the “Eastern Turkistan
National Center” carried out bomb attacks on the
Chinese Consulate-General in Istanbul;
In November
1999 and August 2000, the “Eastern Turkistan”
elements were involved in the armed insurgence and invasion
led by the “Uzbek Islamic Movement” into the
southern regions of Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan
respectively;
In May 2000, terrorists of the
“Uygur Liberation Organization” set fire to the
Chinese Commodities Market in Bishkek and murdered one
person from China’s Xinjiang, who was sent to
Kyrgyzstan to investigate the case;
On 28 September,
terrorists under the command of the “Uygur Liberation
Organization” killed two Kazkh policemen in
Alma-Ata;
In May 2001, terrorists of the “Uygur
Youth Association of Kazakhstan” robbed in Alma-Ata a
bank vehicle that carried banknotes.
II. The
Relationship Between the “Eastern Turkistan”
Terrorists and the Taliban in Afghanistan and Osama bin
Laden
Osama bin Laden and the Taliban in Afghanistan
have provided the “Eastern Turkistan” terrorist
organizations with equipment and financial resources and
trained their personnel. The basic facts are as
follows:
1) The “Eastern Turkistan
Islamic Movement” (hereinafter referred to as ETIM) is
a major component of the terrorist network headed by Osama
bin Laden. Hasan Mahsum, the ETIM ringleader, is
hiding in Kabul, Afghanistan and carries an Afghanistan
passport issued by the Taliban. Osama bin Laden
demanded that the ETIM stir up turmoil in the near future in
the three Central Asian countries, namely, Uzbekistan,
Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, and then stage an organized
infiltration into China’s Xinjiang. The
“Turkistan Army” under the ETIM fights in combat
for the Taliban in Afghanistan. This
“Army” has a special “China
Battalion” with about 320 terrorists form Xinjiang.
The battalion is under the direct command of Hasan
Mahsum’s deputy Kabar.
2) The armed
elements of the ETIM received training in terrorist training
camps in Afghanistan’s Kabul, Mazar-i-Sharif, Kunduz,
Vardak, Kandahar, Heart, Shibarghan and other places.
Some of these camps are directly under the control
of Osama bin Laden and the Taliban and some are military
bases of the “Uzbek Islamic Movement”.
The “Central Asian Uygur Hezbollah” is
said to have a 1000-strong armed force and have training
bases in Afghanistan. The “Uygur National
Army” received battle training in July and August 1999
in the Taliban bases in Afghanistan. They
practiced conventional weapons with live ammunition and
learned the Taliban guerilla warfare tactics and terrorist
skills such as assassination, explosion and poison-doping.
After their training, the “Eastern
Turkistan” elements have fought in combats in
Afghanistan, Chechnya and Uzbekistan, or returned to
Xinjiang for terrorist and violent
activities.
3) In early 1999, Osama bin Laden
met with Hasan Mahsum, the ETIM ringleader, and undertook to
offer him financial assistance. Since October
2000, Osama bin Laden and the Taliban have provided the ETIM
with 300, 000 US dollars in various ways, and undertook to
cover all the expenses of the ETIM activities for the year
of 2001. The activities of the “Central
Asian Uygur Hezbollah” are also partially financed by
Osama bin Laden.