Uyghur-people.jpg (Photo : Reuters)
Students in the national defense program of Xinjiang University have formally started undergoing the institution's Uyghur language training program, according to the Global Times.
Joining the students in the program, which will last for a year and a half, are officials in the political department of Xinjiang Military Area Command.
The program's goal is to equip the cadets and officials with the language skills needed to perform their duties well, according to Xinjiang Daily, adding that the training's focus is on developing the learners' speaking and listening skills.
When the training has concluded, the participants are expected to have the ability to converse in basic Uyghur and convey 500-job-related sentences and 2,500 common phrases in the language.
Military officers will be able to carry out their responsibilities better and maintain accord in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region with the help of the program, said Zhou Yishan, deputy director of the political department of Xinjiang Military Area Command.
Meanwhile, Xu Jianying, a research fellow with the Research Center for Chinese Borderland History and Geography, said that the training will hone the officers' communication skills, enabling them to serve the locales better and improve understanding between them and the residents.
The Uyghur people make up one of the largest ethnic minorities in China, with their language being one of the official languages in Xinjiang.
