China Forces Muslim Shop Owners to Sell Alcohol and Cigarettes

The Chinese government has taken drastic action to try and separate its Uighur minority from its Islamic identity.

The Washington Post reports that every Muslim shopkeeper in the town of Aktash is now required by law to sell cigarettes and alcohol although many Muslims believe that consuming such products is sinful.

Most Muslim shop owners in the town, located in Xinjiang Province, stopped selling such goods in 2012 because of public disapproval. Xinjiang is where most of China's Uighur minority is located, and has been the site of violent clashes between state security forces and citizens who feel as though their identity is being repressed. The Chinese government has already outlawed women wearing veils that cover their face and has an active campaign to discourage men from growing beards.

The new regulations state that shop owners must sell five different brands of alcohol and cigarettes in gaudy displays that command attention. Shop owners who refuse to follow the order have been threatened with legal action that would result in the loss of their business.

The campaign against Uighurs and Islam waged by the Chinese government has become so draconian that the state views Uighurs who do not smoke as religious extremists.

The new regulation regarding the selling of alcohol and tobacco threatens to provoke more violence from radical Islamist Uighurs. Knife attacks in public spaces by Uighurs have occurred with increasing regularity over the past year. In one incident at a train station in the city of Kunming, nearly 30 people were killed.