As first reported in the Telegraph, the grounds of the demolished Duling Mosque in Hotan, part of the Xinjiang province, were sold to a Chinese developer who has plans for a mixed-use development on the site, including a Hampton by Hilton hotel, which is owned by Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc.
A sign at the construction site for the new hotel asks passersby to “warmly celebrate the Communist Party’s 100th anniversary,” according to media reports. A review of Hilton’s website found there are already several Hilton properties in the Xinjiang province. A Hampton by Hilton hotel at Urumqi International Airport, 700 miles away from the site of the demolished mosque, and a Hilton in the center of Urumqi as well. A Conrad hotel is set to open for business in Urumqi, which is the region’s capitol, later this year.
The plans have sparked the ire of Muslim groups in the United States, including the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
“If the Hilton Corporation goes ahead with the building of a Hampton hotel on the site of a demolished mosque, they will be assisting the Chinese government in its campaign of cultural erasure against the Uyghurs. To assist in the erasure of the Uyghurs is to assist in their genocide,” CAIR said in a statement posted on the group’s website.
Hilton Hotels did not respond to requests for comment from Religion News Service.