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'RELIGION IS DYING'

In a cold dusty part of central China, a local Muslim leader stands alone in the courtyard of a small mosque.

It feels eerily quiet.

We both know we shouldn't stay too long. If the police realise foreign journalists are here, it will bring trouble for him - and for us. He is careful about what he says. Everyone here is. But there is a subtle reality at play that he wants to communicate.

"The religion was living and now, it's like it's dying," he says.

What he's describing is, in part, the impact of an express policy in Xi Jinping's China - one that aims to "Sinicize" religion, to reduce its influence and make it more "Chinese".

WHO ARE THE HUI?

When you talk about Chinese Muslims, most people initially think about the Uyghur minority who predominantly live in far western Xinjiang province.

That group, from Turkic origins, have been in the headlines due to their mass arrest and incarceration in a series of camps that China contends are actually "vocational education and training" centres.

But they are not China's only Muslim minority.

The Hui is actually China's largest Muslim group, with a population of more than 11 million across the country, according to the 2020 census.

Although they are officially designated as an ethnic category, they speak Chinese, and their communities are spread across the country - leading experts to describe them as China's "most assimilated" Muslim group.

'CHILDREN ARE FORBIDDEN'

At midday prayers in a small mosque in Tongxin County, there are a few pairs of shoes belonging to the worshippers outside.

Aside from one small crescent moon atop the roof, there wasn't much indication this place was a mosque at all.

"The dome was removed three years ago," says Lao Hai, a worshipper in his 60s who stays to chat with us.

"They said no Western, no Arabic styles were allowed. We must only have Chinese-style mosques."

He's lived here with his family for his entire life. Religion, he says, is highly important to both him and this community.

Within the mosque, there are papers used by the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to teach national policies.

Children are not allowed to learn Arabic and those under 18 "are absolutely forbidden to enter mosques", Mr Hai explains.

He is matter-of-fact about all this - to be anything else would be dangerous - but there is a clearly detectable hint of sadness too.

"I wish it was still there," he says, referring to the dome. "But wishing cannot turn to reality."

"You can't do anything about national policy. It's the country's policy and you have to obey."

The Chinese embassy in London said some mosques were ageing and "have become so dilapidated as to render religious activities impossible during windy and rainy weather".

'WE ARE BEING FOLLOWED'

Not one of the nine village mosques we visit in Tongxin has a dome or minaret, despite satellite imagery showing many once had them.

Arabic signage has been ripped down. Almost every mosque has standard-issue billboards highlighting the importance of Communist Party doctrine. One has a CCP banner draped prominently across the front of the prayer hall interior.

It was striking how quiet all these places were.

There is little sign of a resident Imam or support staff. At prayer times, there are just a handful of worshippers.

And there is a clear sensitivity - and tension - around us being here.

After a few hours in the village, we become aware we're being followed by multiple cars.

The next day when we return, men who aren't in uniform obstruct us. One blocks our car in and demands to see our IDs, threatening our Chinese colleagues - saying he would call a group of villagers to come to beat them up.

It felt too unsafe to stay and we chose to leave.

'LITTLE MECCA'

Elsewhere, the mosques we visited felt a little less deserted, but the picture of destruction was the same.

The city of Linxia's reputation as China鈥檚 "little Mecca" had made its grand mosques tourist attractions as well as important worship sites.

While those in a more Chinese style are still very elaborate and beautiful, domes and minarets were hard to find.

At one mosque, a crescent moon lies on the floor, seemingly having been taken down recently.

At another, a local pointed out an Islamic school connected to the mosque. "There used to be more than 600 students," he said.

"It was the biggest [Arabic] school in Linxia. Now the country doesn't allow it, they鈥檙e not recruiting. Now there are no more than 60 students."

In another simple mosque on Linxia's outskirts, we meet a deputy imam who is softly spoken, shy and didn't want to give his name.

His face is etched with sadness.

"Now there are fewer children learning in mosques," he says.

"In our childhood, let me tell you, there were 200, 300 in one mosque. Now not even two or three.

"It is not a good feeling. The religion was living and now it's like it's dying.

"There are so few people now in such a big mosque - imams are alone."

'THEY REALLY WANT TO ELIMINATE RELIGION'

The "Sinization of religion" was first mentioned by President Xi Jinping in 2015, hot on the heels of the declaration of his "Strike Hard Campaign" against violent terrorism. That policy was announced in the wake of a series of attacks by Uyghurs and ultimately led to the crackdown in Xinjiang.

In a cache of leaked internal Chinese government documents known as the Xinjiang Papers, one written in 2018 called "Document 10" lays out plans to control Islam across China by "actively guiding Islam to adapt to socialist society".

Achieving this includes an explicit plan to reduce the number of mosques outlining that "the principle of tearing down more and building fewer", the document says.

It also states that Arabic should be forbidden and party members must be atheists.

Another document produced by the state-run China Islamic Association is called "Five Year Plan For The Sinisisation Of Islam".

It talks about the need to enforce the use of "the nation's common language to preach," to "persist in the separation of religion and education" and to ensure mosques contain visual reminders of the importance of state; "the national flag, the Constitution, laws, and regulations; the Core Socialist Values, and the exceptional Chinese virtues".

Chinese officials have also described the leaked Xinjiang papers as a "fabrication" and an attempt to "smear China's counter-terrorism and de-radicalisation efforts".

Ma Haiyun, associate professor at Frostburg State University and a member of the Hui community that has now gained US citizenship, says: "From a communist, Marxist perspective they really want to eliminate religion. Without eliminating religions and beliefs you really cannot have loyal subjects.

"You cannot compete with the CCP for social influence or cultural influence."

The Chinese embassy in London told us: "Following policies that protect freedom of religious belief, China, like other countries, administers religious affairs in accordance with law. We are resolute in rejecting and fighting religious extremism. Believers' normal religious activities are guaranteed in accordance with law and their customs respected.

"Today, in more than 35,000 mosques in China, over 20 million Muslims are free to practice their religion in accordance with law."

On the issue of mosques undergoing architectural changes, the Chinese embassy in London said some mosques in certain regions were "built in the 1980s and 1990s or even earlier" and "have become so dilapidated as to render religious activities impossible during windy and rainy weather". It said local governments have responded to the calls of Muslim communities and made "mosques safer, better situated and cleaner".

MOSQUE CLOSURES

In an upcoming paper co-authored by historian and Hui expert Dr Hannah Theaker, her research has found that In Ningxia alone, more than 1,000 mosques have likely been closed in the past two to three years - a figure that represents around a third of the total number.

This crucially does not include unregistered mosques - hundreds, if not thousands, of worship places that were officially illegal and thus easy to shut down and hard to trace.

In the village of Laioqiao on the outskirts of Wuzhong city in Ningxia, six mosques once existed - all of which had domes or minarets. Satellite imagery suggests three have been partially destroyed.

We could only visit four of the six sites as we experienced heavy tailing and obstruction by police. Two were bolted shut and clearly deserted, with holes in the ground where buildings had once stood.

The justification for mosque consolidations from officials is about "reducing burdens on local communities", says Dr Theaker.

"In practice, it seems to be quite straightforwardly about just reducing the amount of religious activity."

There have been pockets of resistance. Significant protests erupted in May last year in Yunnan Province, where a dome was scheduled to be removed.

Hundreds gathered and clashed with police around the famous Najiaying mosque.

"The people's opinions are very clear: defend the faith, freedom, and determination not to give in," tweeted Ma Jun, a prominent Hui community spokesperson living abroad.

Elsewhere, there have been smaller demonstrations.

On the whole, though, people do not feel they are able to do or say much.

FEARS ABOUT THE FUTURE

Experts disagree on what the endgame is here for China's leaders and to what extent the changes being experienced by the Hui are part of a longer-term campaign.

While Ma Haiyun argues Islam in China will never be fully "eliminated" due to the globalised nature of the country and of Islam itself, others are more alarmed.

Dr Theaker says there is a comparison between what is happening to the Hui and the plight of the Uyghurs in Xinjiang, claiming it is "a more subtle version of what has happened there, in its goals and its implementation".

In a statement, the Chinese embassy in London described allegations of incarceration in Xinjiang as "nothing but lies" and argued the region鈥檚 development "has entered the best period in history".

In our visits to Hui communities, we found people are begrudgingly accepting the changes around them, largely because they appear to be slow, subtle and incremental.

Many told us they still feel proudly Chinese and are content as long as they are still allowed to worship.

But there is real fear about whether that will continue, what it might look like and where this latest round of religious repression could ultimately lead.