<p>China's government is calling on protesters to turn themselves in after a crowd clashed with police over plans to demolish a mosque in the country's southwest as President Xi Jinping's government tightens control over religion and society.</p>.<p>Protesters threw water bottles at officers with helmets and shields outside the blue-domed Najiaying Mosque in Yuxi, a city in Yunnan province, according to videos on social media.</p>.<p>One punched a police officer's helmet but little other violence was shown.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/national/national-politics/congress-wants-centre-to-come-out-with-white-paper-on-situation-along-the-lac-with-china-1223289.html" target="_blank">Congress wants Centre to come out with White Paper on situation along the LAC with China</a></strong></p>.<p>The <em>Associated Press</em> confirmed the location of the protest. Videos showing the protests were removed from Chinese social media.</p>.<p>Police called on “criminal suspects” to turn themselves in following Saturday's incident and said those who do might receive lighter punishment.</p>.<p>A police statement vowed “zero tolerance” toward “criminal activities that impede social management.”</p>.<p>People who answered the phone Tuesday at the police headquarters referred questions to the local government propaganda office.</p>.<p>An employee who answered the phone there said the office had no information.</p>.<p>A court in 2020 ordered the Najiaying Mosque demolished after ruling it was built without official permission, according to a document on the court website.</p>.<p>The protesters were Hui, whose ancestors were members of China's majority Han ethnic group and adopted Islam, according to the videos.</p>.<p>A man in a ripped T-shirt was shown wearing handcuffs but it was unclear whether he was in police custody. A caption said some 30 people were detained but the public dragged some away from police.</p>.<p>Elsewhere, Xi's government has demolished mosques or removed domes, minarets and other distinctive Muslim features to transform them into nondescript, Chinese-style buildings.</p>.<p>In the northwest, some 1 million members of the mostly Muslim Uyghur minority have been confined to detention centers, according to foreign researchers. The government says they are for job training and to combat radicalism.</p>.<p>That has prompted complaints Xi's government is trying to erase the cultural identity of Muslim minorities.</p>.<p>Two female spectators in Yuxi wore Muslim headscarves. Protesters and other spectators were men in T-shirts and trousers or shorts.</p>
<p>China's government is calling on protesters to turn themselves in after a crowd clashed with police over plans to demolish a mosque in the country's southwest as President Xi Jinping's government tightens control over religion and society.</p>.<p>Protesters threw water bottles at officers with helmets and shields outside the blue-domed Najiaying Mosque in Yuxi, a city in Yunnan province, according to videos on social media.</p>.<p>One punched a police officer's helmet but little other violence was shown.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/national/national-politics/congress-wants-centre-to-come-out-with-white-paper-on-situation-along-the-lac-with-china-1223289.html" target="_blank">Congress wants Centre to come out with White Paper on situation along the LAC with China</a></strong></p>.<p>The <em>Associated Press</em> confirmed the location of the protest. Videos showing the protests were removed from Chinese social media.</p>.<p>Police called on “criminal suspects” to turn themselves in following Saturday's incident and said those who do might receive lighter punishment.</p>.<p>A police statement vowed “zero tolerance” toward “criminal activities that impede social management.”</p>.<p>People who answered the phone Tuesday at the police headquarters referred questions to the local government propaganda office.</p>.<p>An employee who answered the phone there said the office had no information.</p>.<p>A court in 2020 ordered the Najiaying Mosque demolished after ruling it was built without official permission, according to a document on the court website.</p>.<p>The protesters were Hui, whose ancestors were members of China's majority Han ethnic group and adopted Islam, according to the videos.</p>.<p>A man in a ripped T-shirt was shown wearing handcuffs but it was unclear whether he was in police custody. A caption said some 30 people were detained but the public dragged some away from police.</p>.<p>Elsewhere, Xi's government has demolished mosques or removed domes, minarets and other distinctive Muslim features to transform them into nondescript, Chinese-style buildings.</p>.<p>In the northwest, some 1 million members of the mostly Muslim Uyghur minority have been confined to detention centers, according to foreign researchers. The government says they are for job training and to combat radicalism.</p>.<p>That has prompted complaints Xi's government is trying to erase the cultural identity of Muslim minorities.</p>.<p>Two female spectators in Yuxi wore Muslim headscarves. Protesters and other spectators were men in T-shirts and trousers or shorts.</p>