A ‘New Beginning’ for Xi’s Assimilationist Agenda

(Arran Hope – The Jamestown Foundation) The Ethnic Unity and Progress Promotion Law creates statutory obligations that will lead to more comprehensive enforcement of Beijing’s assimilationist agenda. Local governments will create new regulations and update old ones to bring their practices in line with its mandates, and appropriate more resources for “forging a common Chinese national consciousness.”. The law builds on more than 20 provincial regulations and laws that have accumulated over more than 15 years. It also complements the newly revised Standard Spoken and Written Chinese Language Law that since January has accelerated the removal of minority language scripts from public life. The United Nations has led pushback to the law, with a letter warning that it likely violates at least 12 international human rights laws that the People’s Republic of China has ratified. International support for the law has been notably absent, even among Beijing’s closer partners. – A ‘New Beginning’ for Xi’s Assimilationist Agenda – Jamestown