Yes, traditional Uyghur Islamic practices are relatively liberal, as I understand it. What the Chinese government fears is the recent spread of extremist religi

Yes, traditional Uyghur Islamic practices are relatively liberal, as I understand it. What the Chinese government fears is the recent spread of extremist religious beliefs (e.g., Salafism) in Xinjiang. The Chinese government is of course also worried about Uyghur separatism. However, I don't think these are entirely separate phenomena.