Guangzhou noodle shops, Mandarin in Tibet in focus as China pushes ethnic integration

Many people in the Chinese city of Guangzhou enjoy eating halal noodles, a popular and affordable option around the country. What they probably do not know is that the local government closely monitors these restaurants as part of its ethnic integration programme.

Guangzhou, a city of 22 million, is using big data to track the activities of its ethnic minority residents in a model that is likely to be applied across China.

According to the latest official publication on China’s ethnic integration policy, the southern city is the first in the country to set up a big data system relating to its 830,000 residents who are members of ethnic minorities.

Published in November by the National Ethnic Affairs Commission (NEAC), the book says the monitoring includes oversight of halal noodle shops run mainly by Muslim minorities, such as Huis and Uygurs.

The commission researches and formulates China’s ethnic minority policy.

Though it does not explain how this is carried out, the book says the database brings together more than 4 million records and covers every ethnic minority individual who rents a flat in the city.