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Economist Podcasts

The Prince episode 6: Seeds of a pomegranate

Economist Podcasts

The Economist

News & Politics, News

4.44.9K Ratings

🗓️ 10 October 2022

⏱️ 39 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

A Uyghur language teacher is accused of spying for the CIA. An NBA player discovers the cost of criticising China. And Xi Jinping’s obsession with control reaches new and brutal extremes.


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Transcript

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0:00.0

From the Intelligence, I'm Jason Palmer. This is episode 6 of a new 8-part podcast series from the Economist.

0:07.0

The show is called The Prince, and it's about the leader of China, Xi Jinping.

0:12.0

If you haven't heard the previous episodes, or if you can't wait for the next one, you can hear the whole series now by searching for The Prince on your podcast app.

0:20.0

A quick note before we start. This episode includes a brief description of sexual assault that some listeners might find upsetting.

0:27.0

If you'd rather skip it, I'll flag it again when we get there.

0:32.0

A man bolsa. This is Abdul Ali Ayyup and his young daughter. Abdul Ali grew up and spent a lot of his life in the Chinese territory of Xinjiang. Xinjiang is home to about 12 million Wigas. The Wigas are a Muslim minority.

1:01.0

Their language is similar to Turkish, and for decades they've been persecuted inside China by the Communist Party's attempts to assimilate them.

1:09.0

Abdul Ali lived in a city called Kashgar, which is closer to Baghdad than Beijing. He lives in Norway now with his family. He's been teaching the Wigal language to his daughter.

1:20.0

If your homeland is peaceful, is safe?

1:43.0

My daughter asked me, Dad, my friends, no one speak Wig or Hair. What are you doing?

1:52.0

I told her that because of my mom, when I was young, maybe she would not exist anymore. But she still keeps teaching me.

2:07.0

I am doing the same thing to you. Maybe it's not useful, but if you call me Dad, I cannot feel I'm your daddy.

2:19.0

And if you call me Dad, I feel I'm real Dad for you.

2:27.0

Why do we learn Wigar?

2:34.0

Since then, since if we don't learn it, we can't speak to our people.

2:42.0

So this is the language of love, not the language of school, not the language of your daily life. This is the language of love between us.

2:59.0

I'm Sulin Wang. From the Economist, this is the Prince, a podcast about China's leader, Xi Jinping.

3:07.0

Episode 6. Seeds of a Pomegranate.

3:12.0

Xi Jinping's China puts the interest of the many over the rights of the few. And it defines his interests narrowly, security and prosperity.

3:22.0

What does that mean for those in the minority? And those who speak out for them, both in China and abroad.

3:45.0

Let's learn. Yes. Let's poetry. I'm not going to play this.

3:52.0

But, my poetry.

...

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