A secretive Chinese Communist Party organ is taking an unusually hands-on role in directing a vast predictive policing effort in Xinjiang, according to a report that unmasks Beijing’s political architecture in the far Western region.

The Political and Legal Affairs Commission is managing a real-world "Minority Report” system that has used mass data collection to prompt investigations into millions of Uyghurs often for reasons as trivial as downloading a file sharing app, said Australia- and U.S.-backed research institute Australian Strategic Policy Institute.

While elsewhere in China the PLAC is a coordinating body that oversees the nation’s law and order system without significant operational capabilities, the report found that in Xinjiang the PLAC’s "budget and responsibilities” expanded markedly in recent years.