By Shannon Tiezzi
2014 was year of deadly terrorist attacks for China. Beijing is determined not to let history repeat itself in 2015.
In September 2014, bombings in Xinjiang’s central Luntai County killed over 40 people, including six civilians, and left 54 injured. Now Xinhua reports that 17 officials from the area have been “punished for dereliction of duty” after the terrorist attack.
According to Xinhua, most of the officials were “given serious warnings,” but at least one, the Party chief of Terakbazar township, was dismissed from his post. The Party chief of Luntai County, Lin Fulin, was the most high-ranking official listed in the article as having been disciplined.
The move to discipline Party officials serves as a warning that local leaders will be held accountable if a terrorist attack happens on their watch. Xinhua emphasized that “Xinjiang is in the midst of an intensive crackdown on terrorism,” part of which includes increasing pressure on local officials to prevent attacks at their source. Zhang Chunxian, the top-ranking Chinese Communist Party official in Xinjiang, was recently quoted by the official Xinjiang news site as saying that Xinjiang’s “struggle against terrorism has entered a new phase, one that is more complex and more intense than before.” Xinjiang officials must go on the offensive and attack on all fronts, Zhang added.
Read the full story at The Diplomat