Aerial photo taken on June 14, 2019 shows the construction site of a highway linking Bulungkol with Kunjirap in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Hu Huhu)
VIBRANT ECONOMY
Spotless packaging lines are in full operation at a plant in Xinjiang Fruits Products Group Co., Ltd., based in Urumqi, the regional capital. Dried dates, walnuts and raisins produced in Xinjiang are sold across the country and overseas.
Thriving fruits, grain, cotton, and animal husbandry industries make Xinjiang the main agricultural region in China. It is the country's largest cotton production base.
The tourism, trade and manufacturing industries are also booming in the region. From January to August, Xinjiang received about 150 million tourists, which is close to the full-year figure for 2018. The region is expected to welcome over 200 million tourists this year, said Erkin Tuniyaz, vice chairman of Xinjiang.
Xinjiang's gross domestic product (GDP), which was 791 million yuan in 1952, soared to 1.2 trillion yuan in 2018, an annual growth rate of 8.3 percent. Per capita GDP was 49,000 yuan in 2018, yearly growth of 5.7 percent compared to 1952, statistics showed.
Since 2014, Xinjiang has seen 2,451 westbound trains, reaching out to 26 cities in 19 countries, exporting mechanical parts and laptops while importing products such as wine and grain. In 2018, Xinjiang's foreign trade volume was 20 billion U.S. dollars, 1,481 times the figure in 1950.
"Xinjiang plays an irreplaceable role in building the Silk Road Economic Belt. It must seize the historic opportunity, and integrate regional opening-up strategy into the country's efforts to build the Silk Road Economic Belt and open up to the west," President Xi said.
PRESERVATION OF CULTURE, HERITAGE
Abudubek Eskan, 42, often thinks of his teacher Jusup Mamay, a legendary singer of the Kirgiz epic Manas, who passed away in 2014 at the age of 97 in his hometown of Akqi County in Xinjiang.
Epic Manas tells the story of the hero Manas and his seven descendants in more than 230,000 lines. Manas singers are highly regarded by Kirgiz people for their good memory and narrative skills.
"The passing down of Manas depended solely on one master telling another face to face. Once the master dies, it is very difficult to pass down the art," said Eskan.
The government of Kirgiz Autonomous Prefecture of Kizilsu has accredited 100 people, aged from 20 to 70, to be Manas singers. They receive monthly government stipends to carry on the art.
"I'm teaching my 7-year-old son to sing Manas, I hope young people can bring new life to the art," said Eskan.
Xinjiang is a multi-ethnic region. Across the region, there are 24,800 venues for religious activities, including mosques, churches, Buddhist and Taoist temples, with 29,300 religious staff. People in the region enjoy freedom of religious belief. Efforts have been made to boost ethnic unity so they could be united together "like seeds of a pomegranate."
The family of Kurban Tulum is well-known in Xinjiang for their roles in promoting ethnic solidarity.
Kurban Tulum, a farmer from Hotan, was twice received by Chairman Mao Zedong. Now the extended family of Tulum has over 100 members.
Tohtihan Kurban, the eldest daughter of Kurban Tulum in her 90s, has spent her lifetime continuing her father's efforts. "Having gold and silver does not make you rich, unity and harmony between people is the true treasure," she said.
