AFP Restrictions on fasting during the holy Islamic month of Ramadan have eased in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) in recent years, but residents continue to refrain from doing so, according to local authorities, suggesting a lingering fear of being branded an “extremist” and marked for detention. For years, Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims in the XUAR have been prohibited from fully observing Ramadan due to religious persecution and restrictions imposed by the Chinese government, which has in many cases banned civil servants, students and teachers from fasting during the holy month. In certain areas of the region, access to mosques is more tightly controlled and restaurants are ordered to remain open, while Uyghur retirees are often forced to pledge ahead of Ramadan that they won’t fast or pray to set an example for the wider community and to assume responsibility for ensuring others also refrain.