China's western region of Xinjiang has set new rules to boost "ethnic solidarity," state media said on Friday, amid roiling violence between Muslim Uighurs and the majority Han Chinese that has left hundreds dead in recent years.

The government has blamed unrest in Xinjiang on Islamist militants, though rights groups and exiles say anger at Chinese controls on the religion and culture of the Uighurs is more to blame than any cohesive militant group.

The new rules, introduced on Jan. 1, make promoting ethnic unity a main factor in evaluating officials' performance on the job, the official Xinhua News Agency said.