On Tuesday, just six days after a bomb attack at Urumqi railway station, a man dressed in white stabbed six people at Guangzhou railway station. One of the victims is in a serious condition and the suspect has been detained.
The series of attacks at railway stations - knifewielding attackers injured many and spread terror at Kunming railway station on March 1 - highlights the urgency to strengthen security in public places to protect innocent people.
It is not yet known whether the Guangzhou violence is another terrorist attack, but many netizens' immediately called for "eliminating Uygur terrorists" to protect people's lives. Such passionate outpouring of hatred for an ethnic group is a worrying trend. People should not mix up terrorism with ethnic conflicts. Creating mistrust among different ethnic groups and spreading panic will serve nobody but the terrorists and other illintentioned people in our society.
The attack at Urumqi railway station took place on April 30 after President Xi Jinping had completed his inspection tour of the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region and a day before Beijiangzhixing (Star of Northern Xinjiang) intercity high-speed train was to embark on its maiden journey. Three people, including two suspects, were killed and 7-9 injured in that attack.
Like the violent attack at Kunming railway station in Yunnan province on March 1, the Urumqi bomb blast was also aimed at spreading panic among the people and fanning ethnic and religious passions in order to arrest Xinjiang's march to prosperity.
Terrorists have long targeted Xinjiang because it is an important energy, grain and cotton base of China, as well as the country's gateway to Central Asia and India, Pakistan and even Russia. The three evil forces of separatism, extremism and terrorism have targeted Xinjiang since the 1990s. And the East Turkistan Islamic Movement, which has masterminded many of the attacks in China and neighboring countries, is the epitome of these evil forces.
The attacks in Kunming and Urumqi reflect the gravity of the problem facing Xinjiang and the country as a whole. They highlight the necessity of being well prepared to meet severe challenges to ensure the well-being of all ethnic groups. And the country's top leadership knows that.
Since the second half of 2013 Xi has been emphasizing the importance of eliminating terrorism and has personally overseen antiterrorist drills at Kashgar in Xinjiang. He has said the fight against terrorism is "concerned with national security and the happiness of our people" and called it "a struggle for national integration, social stability and people's happiness".
On his latest inspection tour, Xi said, "matters related to Xinjiang are of special, strategic meaning to the whole of China", stressing the importance of the region for the whole country. He also said the central government is determined to protect the people at all costs.
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