英国财相在严密安保下访问新疆

George Osborne has tentatively raised concerns on China’s human rights record in the restive region of Xinjiang, as news emerged that at least 40 people had been killed or injured in a new outbreak of violence.

乔治攠斯本(George Osborne)在不安定的新疆地区试探性地提出了对中国人权记录的关切。有消息称，该地区最新爆发的暴力行为导致至少40人死伤。

The chancellor’s trade mission to Urumqi, the Xinjiang capital, was always politically risky but the latest violence in the region involving alleged Muslim Uighur “separatists” cast a shadow over his visit.

英国财政大臣对新疆首府乌鲁木齐的经贸访问在政治上始终是有风险的，但是，涉及所谓维吾尔族穆斯林“分裂分子”的最新暴力事件仍给他的到访蒙上一层阴影。

Mr Osborne’s visit is a first by a serving British minister and one of few by any leading western politician to the autonomous region in the far north-west of China. Asked if his visit would be used as a propaganda tool by Beijing, Mr Osborne insisted he had raised human rights issues as part of a “broader conversation with China”.

奥斯本是首位访问新疆的英国在职部长级官员，也是迄今访问中国西北这个偏远地区的少数西方高层政界人士之一。在被问及他的访问会不会被北京方面用作宣传工具时，奥斯本坚称，他提出了人权问题，作为“同中国全面对话”的一部分。

Mr Osborne said he had also publicly criticised the life sentence given to Uighur academic Ilham Tohti exactly a year ago. “Our concerns about the Tohti case are well known and we have made them very public,” he said.

奥斯本表示，他还公开批评了恰好一年前维吾尔族学者伊力哈木土赫提(Ilham Tohti)被判无期徒刑一事。“我方对土赫提案的担忧是众所周知的，我们已经非常公开地表达了这些担忧，”他说。

Dilxat Raxit, Munich-based spokesman for the World Uighur Congress, one of the two main Uighur exile groups, said: “George Osborne’s inability to publicly denounce China’s suppression of Uighurs is disappointing.

两个主要的维吾尔族流亡团体之一世界维吾尔代表大会(World Uyghur Congress)驻慕尼黑的发言人迪里夏提(Dilxat Raxit)说：“乔治攠斯本不能公开谴责中国对维族人的镇压是令人失望的。”

“Britain can’t give the silent nod to China’s particular suppression of the Uighurs due to economic benefits, sending the wrong signal to China and leading to China increasing monitoring and suppression in the region. China is using economic interest to divide the west.”

“英国不能因为经济利益就对中国镇压维吾尔人作出无声的点头，从而向中国发出错误信号，导致中国加大对该地区的监控和镇压。中国正利用经济利益来分裂西方。”

The chancellor has refused during his five-day tour of China to let concerns about human rights get in the way of his principal goal of building political and trade ties between Beijing and London.

在为期五天的访华行程中，英国财相拒绝让人权关切妨碍他的主要目标——在北京和伦敦之间构建政治和经贸关系。

He declined to say whether he would raise the Tohti case personally during meetings in Urumqi, adding: “It would be very strange if Britain’s relations with a country that has one-fifth of the world’s population was solely about human rights.”

他拒绝透露他会不会在乌鲁木齐的会晤中当面提到土赫提案，并补充说：“如果英国与拥有世界上五分之一人口的国家之间的关系纯粹关乎人权，那将是很奇怪的。”

Mr Osborne personally requested to visit Urumqi and spent the morning at a company that was investing in property in the north of England and at an English Premier League football training camp, whose players hail mainly from the Uighur minority.

奥斯本亲自提出访问乌鲁木齐。周三上午，他访问了一家曾在英格兰北部投资房地产的公司，还去看了一个英超足球训练营，那里的多数球员是维吾尔少数民族。

The visit has taken place under tight security; Mr Osborne has travelled in a 17-vehicle convoy with roads sealed off. Beijing-based British journalists were advised by the authorities not to travel to the region. Beijing’s sensitivity was reinforced by news that a knife attack orchestrated by alleged separatists at a coal mine at Sogan in Xinjiang had resulted in at least 40 casualties, including the deaths of five police officers.

这次访问的安保工作十分严密；奥斯本一行的车队有17辆车，沿途实行封路。中国官方建议常驻北京的英国记者不要前往新疆。加剧北京方面敏感的是，有消息称，据称的分裂分子在新疆拜城县铁热克镇附近的一座煤矿发起持刀袭击，造成至少40人伤亡，其中五名警员死亡。

The attack, reported by Radio Free Asia, cited local security officials as saying that several suspects were believed to be on the run, resulting in a massive security crackdown in the area. Although the attack happened on September 18, news has only just emerged.

这次攻击导致当地实行大规模戒严。自由亚洲电台(Radio Free Asia)援引当地安全官员的话称，数名嫌疑人据信在逃。虽然攻击发生在9月18日，但相关消息刚刚传出。