Xinjiang to end migrant card system

The Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region will abolish on Sunday a registration card system introduced two years ago to better manage the migrant population.

The migrant registration card system, introduced on May 1, 2014, was intended to prevent criminal suspects from leaving their hometowns to carry out violent attacks elsewhere. However, many people complained that the system created an inconvenience when they traveled, the regional government said on Wednesday during a news conference held in Urumqi, the regional capital.

"We've noticed that many suspects involved in violent incidents in Xinjiang in 2013 were migrants," said Zhang Xiucheng, deputy director of the regional politics and law committee.