Urbanization in China or 37 percent of the total population in the mid-1980s—was relatively low by comparison with developed nations, the number of people living in urban areas in China was greater than the total population of any country in the world except India. The four Chinese cities with the largest populations in 1985 were Shanghai, with 7 million; Beijing, with 5.9 million; Tianjin, with 5.4 million; and Shenyang, with 4.2 million. The disproportionate distribution of population in large cities occurred as a result of the government's emphasis after 1949 on the development of large cities over smaller urban areas. In 1985 the
Human rights in China Currently, the largest independence effort comes from the Muslim-Turkic population in Xinjiang, which shares minimal cultural, lingual, or historical similarities with the Han population in China. While the Chinese government under Deng Xiaoping promises certain advantages to the Xinjiang population such as affirmative action in universities, greater liberties within China's one-child policy, and an increase in government subsidies to the region, the government also discourages and restricts the Muslim-Turkic ethnic population from freely practicing their religion, expressing their faith through head scarves, fasting, and facial hair, and building mosques freely. Furthermore, because of these advantages that the Chinese government grants