The government of China is funding language classes in a region where 200 people were killed in riots last year.
Eighty people in Xinjiang will be taught to speak Uyghur, the Turkic language spoken by almost half of the province's 22-million-strong population.
In July, 2009, racial divisions came to a head when two Uyghur migrants were shot dead and others wounded following unproven allegations that they had raped Han (ethnic Chinese) women.
Initially peaceful protests in the regional capital of Ürümqi turned violent, resulting in an official death toll of 197, mostly Han. Unofficial estimates have been up to 600, including many Uyghurs.
Among those taking the language classes are public servants, professionals and students.
Mandarin-speaking Xinjiang official An Ping, 36, told the Chinese government's Xinhua News Agency that the lessons were "worth the effort," saying the lack of a common language was a barrier when dealing with ethnic groups.
Speaking the Uyghur language "will bring us closer and help me do a better job," she said.
Since April this year, the Xinjiang regional government has made it compulsory for all public officials to be bilingual, speaking Mandarin alongside at least one language from one of the province's 55 ethnic groups.
An Ping is also introducing her fourth-grade son to the language, teaching him a sentence a day in Uyghur.
Now when he meets Uyghur children in his neighbourhood, he tells them, "If you want to play with me, you must teach me Uyghur."
5 July 2010
Go back to July 2010
