Members of 'big family'

Xinjiang people have a strong understanding of the severe consequences when ethnic unity is sabotaged, which in the past has caused social instability and even led to violence. The lives of people from all ethnic groups are severely disturbed and affected when such incidents happen, Li said.

"We have seen what Xinjiang and Xinjiang people can achieve when the relationships between the region's diverse, interwoven ethnic groups become harmonious, especially over the past decade," she said. "So, more than ever, people in Xinjiang cherish ethnic unity, especially the younger generations."

When he visited the community in July 2022, President Xi Jinping said ethnic unity is the lifeline of all ethnic groups in the country, and that all ethnic groups in Xinjiang are inseparable members of the big family of the Chinese nation.

Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, also called for cherishing the stability and unity that have already been achieved.

Li said: "Xinjiang's stability doesn't only matter to the local people, but is also key to the development of China. And it can only be achieved when people from all ethnic groups understand that despite their different ethnicities, they are all equal members of the Chinese nation with a shared future."

Shalkjan Yiming, from northern Xinjiang's Tacheng city, said ethnic unity is the best defense against secessionists who have in the past harmed Xinjiang residents' lives and damaged national unity.

"The last thing the secessionists want to see is that people from different ethnic groups are united, because they know how powerful it can be," the 79-year-old from the Uygur ethnic group said in the small courtyard of his home in the Hardun residential community. In the city, the courtyard is well-known for the raising of the Chinese national flag during every major festival.

The first flag-raising ceremony was on Oct 1, 2009, the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. Shalkjan felt there was a great need for people to gather under the national flag and "plant the seeds of love" for the country in the hearts of the young generation.