Defense attorneys free for riot suspects

• Source: Global Times
• [07:27 July 24 2009]
• Comments

Knife sales banned

While the trial of the riot runs into the judicial proceedings, the daily hustle and bustle has returned to Xinjiang.

“Public transportation in Urumqi has recovered and traffic controls are rarely seen in major streets of the city. More private cars are running on the streets, and some traffic jams occur in the rush hour,” said Pan Zhiping, a senior researcher at the Xinjiang Academy of Social Sciences.

“The night market has reopened till 1 or 2 am, and the International Grand Bazaar complex has also restarted,” said an official with the regional Office for Maintaining Social
Stability, who asked to remain anonymous.

Nearly half the shops at the bazaar have reopened, with only a few hundred customers showing up, Reuters reported.

The number of security guards was doubled to 70, and knives were banned from sale, Wuxkur Yunus, deputy manager of the bazaar, told Xinhua.

Carrefour, the French supermarket chain and the flagship store of the chain‘s three outlets in the city, also reopened yesterday.

“People go out more often these days, and I get more money than on previous days,” Shi Jinyang, a taxi driver in Urumqi, told the Global Times, adding that civilians prefer to leave their homes in the daytime.

Some websites still blocked

Referring to the restricted Internet access, Zhong Liang, a reporter from Xinjiang Metropolis Newspaper, said a local area network (LAN) has been set up in Xinjiang, allowing residents to visit local government sites and some Xinjiang-based media websites.

However, Xinjiang’s websites, such as those of the regional governments and universities, are still not accessible from outside the region, the Global Times verified yesterday.

“Business goes on here in Xinjiang as residents can get access to securities agencies on the Internet for stocks,” Zhong said.

The regional economy also appears to be in good shape. Exports of agricultural products reached $370 million in the first half of 2009, an increase of 15.8 percent over the same period last year, People’s Daily reported.

Construction of a 135-kilometer expressway, linking Kuytun to Karamay in Xinjiang, began Wednesday. The project, costing 3.87 billion yuan (about $567 million), is scheduled to be completed in November 2011.