The International Union of Muslim Scholars (IUMS) has criticized China's apparent ban on fasting the holy month of Ramadan in the Muslim dominant Xinjiang region, urging the Asian country to respect Muslim faith.
The Union condemned Chinese government policies in the region including forcing restaurants to sell food on Ramadan days as well as forcing parents to sign on banning their children from observing the fasting month.
"Continuous religious and ethnic persecution over Muslims, especially in China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous region, is against Chinese and international law," IUMS said in a statement released on Thursday.
The statement offered no explanation as to exactly what laws it was directly referring to.
It added that the policy "is also contrary to the fourth Geneva Convention in 1949 approved by China," and called the apparent ban "a clear violation of one of the most important principles of modern international law."
The Union called on the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and other international organizations to protect Muslims.
Moreover, the IUMS warned that China's failure to offer more freedoms to Uighur Muslims will give scholars a sign to spread news among Muslims worldwide, which would result in severe effect on the Chinese economy.
Every year, Chinese authorities have repeatedly imposed restrictions on Uighur Muslim in the northwestern region of Xinjiang.
Earlier in December, China banned the wearing of Islamic veiled robes in public in Urumqi, the capital of the province of Xinjiang.
source : abna
