URUMQI: President Hu Jintao made his first trip to the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region since last month's deadly riot, where he urged government officials and security forces Tuesday to focus on maintaining stability in the region and warned separatists that they are "doomed to fail".

Hu told leading officials of the region to make upholding social stability the most urgent task, stressing that stability is the prerequisite and guarantee for the region's development.

Expressing gratitude to the armed forces, militia and police for their role in ending the July 5 riot in Urumqi, Hu said: "The key to our work in Xinjiang is to properly handle development and stability."

The July 5 riot, which killed 197 people and injured more than 1,600, were masterminded by the "three forces" of terrorism, separatism and extremism both at home and abroad, he said.

The success in quelling the riot and maintaining stability in Xinjiang fully demonstrated the power of the Party and the people as well as the strength of solidarity among ethnic groups in Xinjiang, Hu said.

"The separatists don't have the people's hearts and are doomed to fail. Their sabotage activities will not shake the stable development of reforms in Xinjiang," he said.

Neither will they sway the Xinjiang people's determination to build a "prosperous and harmonious socialist" Xinjiang, he said.

Hu, also general-secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, said Xinjiang must stick steadfastly to the central tasks of accomplishing economic development, maintaining social stability, and promoting ethnic unity and common prosperity among all ethnic groups.

Hu said the central government's policies with regard to supporting Xinjiang's rapid development have been effective.

The president promised that more solid measures will be taken to beef up economic growth and social development in Xinjiang, and to improve the living and production conditions of the people of various ethnic groups.

On an inspection tour from Aug 22 to 25, Hu visited villages, farms, communities, factories and barracks in Aksu, a predominantly Uygur area; Changji, a land port between China and Central Asian nations; Karamay, a major oil base; Shihezi, headquarters of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps; and the regional capital, Urumqi.

Hu had meetings with military and hospital personnel, as well as local officials and religious representatives.

He visited Zhao Li, the widow of Wan Jingang, a policeman who was killed by rioters in Urumqi on July 5 and promised assistance from the government if her family got into any difficulty.

He assured villagers and herding families that more efficient measures would be taken to support ethnic minorities.

Xinhua - China Daily