Reports have emerged that Chinese authorities have taken recourse to installing QR codes on the doors of houses belonging to Uighur Muslims. This measure is expected to help authorities access instantly the details of the inhabitants of the house and is part of a wider security crackdown in the restive Xinjiang province.

An unprecedented crackdown has been launched by the Chinese authorities in recent years, which include arbitrary detentions, mass internment for political education and restrictions on religious practices. Authorities, however, claim that the motivation behind the installation of QR codes is to ensure proper delivery of services and aid in population control.

Additionally, it has also been alleged that authorities have taken to collecting DNA and voice samples of Xinjiang province residents during issuance of ID cards and passports. These measures are on top of the internment of an estimated million Uighurs in special camps where they are allegedly indoctrinated with political propaganda, compulsory learning of Chinese Mandarin and discouraged from using Islamic practices.

Xinjiang has been in the cross-hairs of authorities due to a separatist movement led by some of the region’s Uighur Muslims. China has repeatedly affirmed its resolve to crush this movement and maintained that the region faces grave security threats from the Islamic militants, resulting in the need for such measures.