Islamic college graduates embrace economic boom

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-07-08 21:04

YINCHUAN -- At a grand mosque modelled on India's Taj Mahal, Ma Chunjun, 24, a graduate from the Islamic Scripture College of Ningxia, the only higher school which trains senior Islamic clergymen in the region, was telling a group of visitors of the history of Chinese Muslims.

Ma has been working as a tourist guide in the newly-built Garden of Hui Nationality's Folkway, the largest museum displaying historical documents and relics about the Chinese Muslims.

Unlike many of his predecessors who chose to be imams or religious administrators, together with nine classmates, he signed an agreement in March with China North Industries Corp, a major defense product manufacturer as an Arabic translator.

Before starting his career in Beijing, he worked part-time in the Garden of Hui Nationality's folkway.

As part of China's reform and opening-up in the poverty-stricken northwestern region, more and more graduates from the Islamic college have chosen to leave the religious life and go to coastal areas or the Middle East as translators, further their study in Arab countries, or teach in local Arabic schools.

Another 10 of Ma's classmates are expected to go to Sudan as project translators. Five chose to teach, and most of the rest will go to Yiwu City in eastern Zhejiang Province and southern China's Guangzhou City to be translators and trade managers, said Wang.

Nobody has chosen to be an imam, although every one of them could get a ahong (imam) certificate before graduation.

This is partly because of the over-supply of ahong in the region. Graduates had to find other job opportunities. Currently, Ningxia has 3,760 mosques and more than 6,000 ahongs.

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