Ayupu Halik, Self-employer of Karamay District, Karamay City

This is Xinjiang, our hometown. My name is Ayupu Halik, and I am now the owner of a barbecue shop in Karamay. I work and live here, and I love this land. Recently, Pompeo attacked Xinjiang with “forced labor”, “genocide” and “crimes against humanity”. As a native in Xinjiang, I cannot bare such insults.

In 2017, I came to Karamay from south Xinjiang to work. With the help of the community, I started security work in Xiyuetan community. At that time, because I could not speak standard Chinese, members of the community actively encouraged me to participate in the standard Chinese learning for free. In addition to my own job, I also help the residents to solve the problem of water leakage, repair and replace the faucets, and help the residents buying food, which let me know more and more people. In 2019, my friend and I opened a barbecue restaurant. Now my salary is very stable and my life is getting better and better. There are many people like me, who change their lives with their own efforts, learn skills, get employment, start a business, and live a better life.

I remember when I was a child, my father taught me that we have deeply cultivated a pomegranate tree in Xinjiang for generations. Each of us is a pomegranate seed, and all the brothers and sisters in this land hold together like pomegranate seeds. When I first came to Karamay for a job, the community offered me a lot of help. I often recall those moments, which make me feel warm and grateful. When I need help, the community visits our homes to help us solve problems. When I become capable enough, I am also willing to use my own strength to help more people around me.

In recent years, many new houses have been built in our hometown. Everyone has their own satisfactory job, and people take part in the national health examination free of charge. Our life is getting better and better. I am also deeply impressed by the development of tourism in Xinjiang. Tourists from all over the world are willing to come to Xinjiang and feel its unique charm. There will be a lot of foreign tourists in my barbecue shop, and they like our local food very much, which makes me feel proud.

Pompeo’s remarks are simply too hateful. He just wanted to hinder the development of Xinjiang and maliciously destroy the unity of people of all ethnic groups. He kept talking about democracy and human rights, not caring about the happy life of ethnic minorities in Xinjiang at all. Instead, he tried to blind everyone’s eyes, cover everyone’s mouth, and hurt the feelings of people of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang. But his so-called statement is just a piece of waste paper. We will have a better life, a more beautiful hometown and a happier future, and love our beautiful hometown Xinjiang even more.