[25] On the other hand, some Han citizens view Uyghurs as benefiting from special treatment, such as preferential admission to universities and exemption from the one-child policy,[42] and as "harbouring separatist aspirations".

[26][45] The riots took place several days after a violent incident in Shaoguan, Guangdong, where many migrant workers are employed as part of a government programme to alleviate labour shortages.

[2][3] All parties, then, agree that the protests were organised beforehand; the main points of contention are whether the violence was planned or spontaneous,[58] and whether the underlying tensions reflect separatist inclinations or a desire for social justice.

[50] Demonstrations began on the evening of 5 July with a protest in the Grand Bazaar, a prominent tourist site,[50][4] and crowd reportedly gathering at the People's Square area.

[12] On 6 July, XUAR chairman Nur Bekri presented an official timeline of the previous day's events, according to which more than 200 demonstrators gathered in People's Square in Ürümqi at about 5 pm local time, and about 70 of their leaders were detained.

[73] About 1,000 police officers were dispatched; they used batons, live ammunition, tasers, tear gas and water hoses to disperse the rioters and set up roadblocks and posted armoured vehicles throughout the city.

[54] At 8:30 pm, violence escalated around South Jiefang Road and Longquan Street area, with rioters torching police patrol cars and attacking passers-by.

Police took control of the main roadways and commercial districts in the city at around 10 pm, but riots continued in side streets and alleyways, with Han civilians attacked and cars overturned or torched, according to the mayor.

[75] The official news agency, Xinhua, reported that police believed agitators were trying to organise more unrest in other areas in Xinjiang, such as Aksu and Yili Prefectures.

[65] Violent protests also sprang up in Kashgar, in southwestern Xinjiang,[76] where the South China Morning Post reported many shops were closed, and the area around the mosque was sealed off by a People's Liberation Army platoon after confrontations.

[19][103] On 10 July, city authorities closed Ürümqi mosques "for public safety", saying it was too dangerous to have large gatherings and that holding Jumu'ah, traditional Friday prayers, could reignite tensions.

[108] In the most high-profile case, Ilham Tohti, an ethnic Uyghur economist at Minzu University of China, was arrested two days after the riots over his criticisms of the Xinjiang government.

[120] Officials reiterated the party line: XUAR chairman Nur Bekri delivered a lengthy address on the situation and on the Shaoguan incident, and claimed that the government of both Guangdong and Xinjiang had dealt with the deaths of the workers properly and with respect.

[18] In an effort to soothe tensions immediately after the riots, state media began a mass publicity campaign throughout Xinjiang extolling ethnic harmony.

[128] South China Morning Post reported a government source saying Beijing would re-evaluate the impact on arrangements for the country's forthcoming 60th anniversary celebrations in October.

"[130] A security planner said the authorities planned to fly in more troops from other stations to raise the number of armed police presence to 130,000 before the 60th anniversary celebrations in October.

[134][135] Common themes were calls for punishment for those responsible; some posts evoked the name of Wang Zhen, a 20th century general who is respected by the Han but feared by many Uyghurs for his repression in Xinjiang after the communist takeover of the region in 1949.

[134] Turkey, a Turkic-majority country with a significant Uyghur minority, officially expressed "deep sadness" and urged the Chinese authorities to bring the perpetrators to justice.

Taiwanese premier Liu Chiao-shiuan also urged restraint and expressed hope that the Chinese authorities will demonstrate the "greatest possible leniency and tolerance in dealing with the aftermath" and respect the rights of ethnic minorities.

[184] Chen Shirong, China editor on the BBC World Service, remarked at the improvement in media management by Xinhua: "To be more credible, it released video footage a few hours after the event, not two weeks.

The author said "a considerable number of media outlets still intentionally or inadvertently minimised the violent actions of the rioters, and attempted to focus on so-called racial conflict.

[195] The photo, showing large number of People's Armed Police squares, was one taken of the 2009 Shishou riot and originally published on 26 June by Southern Metropolis Weekly.

Foreign media said the sentences appeared to be aimed at mollifying the anger of the Han majority;[208][209] the WUC denounced the verdict as "political", and said there was no desire to see justice served.

[221] While the city became calmer after these events, and the government made great efforts to show that life was returning to normal, an armed police presence did remain.

[222] In late August, the central government passed a law outlining standards for the deployment of armed police during "rebellion, riots, large-scale serious criminal violence, terror attacks and other social safety incidents.

[118] In November, the Chinese government dispatched some 400 officials to Xinjiang, including senior leaders such as State Council secretary general Ma Kai, Propaganda department head Liu Yunshan, and United Front chief Du Qinglin, to form an ad hoc "Team of Investigation and Research" on Xinjiang, ostensibly intended on studying the policy changes to be implemented in response to the violence.

A policy has been implemented where if all family members are unemployed, the government arranges for one person in the household to get a job; official announcements are calling upon university students to register for those payouts.

[228] However, independent observers believe that fundamental inequalities need to be addressed, and the mindset must change for there to be any success; Ilham Tohti warned that the new policy could attract more Han immigration, and further alienate the Uyghur population.

[230] Despite the resumption of transportation services, and the government's efforts to encourage visitors to the region, tourism fell sharply after the riots;[21] on the National Day holiday in October, Xinjiang had 25% fewer tourists than it did in 2008.

[118] The communications blackout generated controversy even within China: Yu Xiaofeng of Zhejiang University criticised the move, and many Ürümqi locals said it hurt businesses and delayed recovery, whereas David Gosset of the Euro-China forum argued that the government had the right to shut down communications for the sake of social stability; some locals believed that getting away from the Internet even improved their quality of life.