Key figures & facts: steady progress on human rights in Xinjiang

Emphasis is placed on improving the status of women. Xinjiang upholds the constitutional principle of equality between men and women and guarantees the right of women to participate in democratic decision-making, management and supervision of governance and social affairs. The region attaches importance to the training and selection of female officials, and the number of women participating in the administration of public affairs has continued to grow, from 16,338 in early 1955 to 460,600 in 2019. In early 2020, there were 13 female deputies to the NPC (22.4 percent of Xinjiang’s total), and 146 female deputies to the autonomous regional people’s congress (27.2 percent). Among the members of the CPPCC National Committee living in Xinjiang, eight are women (23.5 percent).

Women are playing a growing role in grassroots democracy and business management. In 2020, women took 64.7 percent of the seats in urban residents committees, and 30.5 percent in villagers committees. Xinjiang guarantees women’s equality in employment and their right to equal pay for equal work. The number of women in employment continues to expand. In 2019, 480,900 new urban jobs were created, of which 228,100 were taken up by women, accounting for 47.4 percent of the total. Women are now playing an important role in various fields, and their social and family status has improved notably.