Ethnic Minorities Policy
How China governs its 55 officially recognized ethnic minorities, the dramatic shift from accommodation to assimilation under Xi Jinping, and the Xinjiang crisis that drew global condemnation.
The Minzu System
China officially recognizes 56 ethnic groups (minzu): the Han majority (approximately 91% of the population) and 55 minorities. The system of ethnic autonomous regions, prefectures, and counties gives titular ethnic groups a degree of formal administrative recognition. Five province-level autonomous regions exist: Tibet, Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, Guangxi, and Ningxia.
For decades, China's minority policy combined economic development with cultural accommodation. Minorities were exempt from the one-child policy, received preferential access to education and government jobs, and were permitted to use their own languages in schools. However, genuine political autonomy was never granted. Key positions in autonomous regions are typically held by Han officials, with minority leaders serving in symbolically important but less powerful roles.