China pushes inter-ethnic marriage in Xinjiang assimilation drive
May 18, 2019AFP
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China’s fractious far-west region of Xinjiang has changed its university entrance exam rules to give children from mixed families a leg-up on other students, in what experts say are the latest efforts to erase a mostly Muslim ethnic culture.
In an online notice posted last week, the Xinjiang government published new rules for giving bonus points to disadvantaged groups in the nationwide college entrance exams — a key deciding factor for attending university in China.
In a reversal of last year’s policy, the regional government doubled the number of bonus points allocated to inter-ethnic students — defined as those with one Han parent — to 20, while more than halving the amount for students whose parents are both ethnic minorities to 15.