Islam frowns on consuming intoxicants, but businesses themselves are not prohibited from selling them. But as abstention from smoking and drinking among Uighurs has become more common, many Uighur-owned businesses have stopped selling the taboo items. Aktash village party committee secretary Adil Sulayman told RFA that the order was established to curb this abstinence.
“We have a campaign to weaken religion here and this is part of that campaign,” Mr. Sulayman told RFA. “Since 2012, people have stopped selling alcohol and cigarettes through their businesses. Even those who benefitted financially from the practice have given it up because they fear public scorn. That is why [the order was issued].”
Sulayman went on to say that China has launched a series of “strike hard” campaigns in an effort to weaken religious strongholds, especially in the heavily Uighur-populated Xinjiang region. Many authorities view abstinence from smoking as a form of “religious extremism” and want to curb terrorism and separatism.
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