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People of all ethnic groups fully enjoy right of freedom in religious belief in Xinjiang: white paper

2009-09-21 19:35 BJT

BEIJING, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- People of all ethnic groups fully enjoy the right of freedom in religious belief in Xinjiang, said a white paper issued by the Information Office of the State Council here Monday.

The people's freedom to believe in, or not to believe in, any religion is protected by the law, and no state organ, public organization or individual may interfere with their choice, said the white paper titled "Development and Progress in Xinjiang".

According to the white paper, by the end of 2008, the autonomous region had 24,800 venues for religious activities, including mosques, churches and temples, in addition to over 29,000 clerical personnel, 91 religious organizations and two religious colleges.

Since the 1980s, more than 50,000 people from Xinjiang have made pilgrimages to Mecca in Saudi Arabia. In recent years, the number of people from Xinjiang who make the pilgrimage each year has been around 2,700, it said.

By 2008, over 1,800 religious personages in Xinjiang had been elected to posts in people's congresses and committees of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference at all levels, according to the white paper.

They have actively participated in deliberation and administration of state affairs on behalf of religious believers, and in exercising supervision over the government in respect to the implementation of the policy of freedom of religious belief, it said.

Editor: Du Xiaodan | Source: Xinhua