China said it will press on with a crackdown on on separatism in the western region of Xinjiang in a battle which could last years, state media reported Friday.
The hardline statement was made by Jerla Isamudinhe, mayor of the regional capital Urumqi, which was rocked by ethnic riots last July, the Xinhua news agency reported.
"Urumqi faces an arduous fight against separatism now and for years to come after last year's riots," he was quoted saying Thursday in a report to the city's municipal congress.
The government has said nearly 200 people were killed and 1,600 injured in the violence that mostly involved attacks by Muslim minority Uighurs against members of China's dominant Han ethnic group.
The unrest drew a massive security clampdown and the mayor's statement was the latest in a series of indications that Beijing's leaders foresee a protracted operation to stamp out Uighur dissent.
"We should be vigilant and high-handed in our fight against terrorism, separatism, and extremism. We should stop all sabotage activities and attempts beforehand," he said.
Many Uighurs view China as an occupying force guilty of political, religious and cultural oppression since Beijing's control was dramatically strengthened after the 1949 Chinese Communist takeover.
There are about eight million members of the Turkic-speaking minority in Xinjiang.
Security was tight even before last July, which China justified by saying it faced serious separatist and terrorist threats there. Authorities have since blamed last July's violence on "separatists" but offered no evidence.
Xinhua quoted the mayor saying Urumqi would "step up efforts to maintain social stability by keeping a closer eye on migrants' communities, ex-convicts and other sensitive areas and suspicious people."
It also would improve its emergency response abilities and security forces, he added.
The Xinjiang regional government said earlier this week it was recruiting 5,000 elite police officers following reports that the region would ramp up security spending.
China's Public Security Minister Meng Jianzhu issued a statement Wednesday warning of a "grim" outlook in Xinjiang, calling on security forces to face the situation with "a more tenacious style".
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