Controlling religion and language in Tibet

[Harold F. Schiffman]

Tibet News

US Commission Says No Significant Change in Chinese Policy of Controlling
Religion in Tibet

International Campaign for Tibet
May 3rd, 2006

The US Commission on International Religious Freedom has said that it
finds no significant changes in the Chinese Government's "overall policy
of strict control over religion in Tibet." This conclusion is drawn in the
Commission's Annual Report for 2006 that was released on May 3, 2006. The
Commission said, "Reports indicate that official campaigns to promote
"patriotic education" in Tibet, and especially in Lhasa, have intensified
in the past year." It also said, "The Chinese government retains tight
control over religious activity and places of worship in the TAR. The
religious activities of monks and nuns are highly controlled, monasteries
are administrated by government-approved management committees, and the
Communist Party insists in approving the selection and training of
reincarnate lamas."

The Commission has made some recommendations to the United States
Government concerning Tibet. It said that the United States Government
should establish a consulate in Lhasa to monitor religious freedom and
other human rights condition in Tibet. It further suggested that education
opportunities be provided for religious leaders from Tibet "in order to
enhance their understanding of religious freedom and other human rights
according to international standards." It recommended that the number and
frequency of VOA and RFA broadcast in the Tibetan language be increased.

The Commission has recommended to the State Department that China be
listed in the category of Countries of Particular Concern as a severe
religious freedom violator. Former Tibetan political prisoner Phuntsog
Nyidron was invited to make a statement at the press conference to release
this annual report.

Following is the full text of the report pertaining to Tibet. The report
can also be viewed at www.uscirf.gov.

The Chinese government retains tight control over religious activity and
places of worship in the TAR. The religious activities of monks and nuns
are highly controlled, monasteries are administrated by
government-approved management committees, and the Communist Party insists
in approving the selection and training of reincarnate lamas. The Chinese
government acknowledges that more than 100 Tibetan Buddhist monks and nuns
are being held in prison. Tibetan human rights groups claim that these
prisoners are subject to torture and other ill-treatment. There have been
some high-profile early releases or reduced sentences of Tibetan Buddhists
in the past several years. In February 2004, authorities released Phuntsog
Nyidron, a nun who had been held in Drapchi Prison since 1989. Phuntsog
Nyidron remained under constant surveillance and her freedom of
association was extremely limited until she was permitted to leave Tibet
for the United States in March 2006. Nevertheless, neither recent prisoner
releases nor renewed contact between China and the Dalai Lama's
representatives have brought any significant changes to the government's
overall policy of strict control over religion in Tibet.

The Chinese government continues to deny repeated international requests
for access to the 17-year old boy whom the Dalai Lama designated as the
11th Panchen Lama. Government officials have stated that he is being "held
for his own safety," while also claiming that another boy, one of their
choosing, is the "true" Panchen Lama. In January 2003, Tenzin Delek
Rinpoche was arrested on charges related to a 2002 bombing incident and
later sentenced to death. U.S. officials were promised that the evidence
used to convict Tenzin Delek would be reviewed by the Supreme People's
Court. After more than two years, the case has never been reviewed, though
Tenzin Delek's death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment in January
2005. Additionally, Pawo Rimpoche, a reincarnate lama recognized by the
Karmapa Lama in 1994, remains under strict surveillance and is not
permitted to leave his monastery.

Reports indicate that official campaigns to promote "patriotic education"
in Tibet, and especially in Lhasa, have intensified in the past year. In
July 2005, 18 monks were expelled from Sera Monastery in Lhasa for
refusing to participate in "patriotic education" sessions. Additionally,
40 nuns were expelled from Gyarak Nunnery in October for similar reasons.
In November, five monks from Drepung Monastery in Lhasa were arrested and
detained after they, along with several other monks, refused to renounce
their loyalty to the Dalai Lama. During the Commission's visit to Lhasa,
Tibetan officials in charge of religious affairs and of public security
informed the Commission that although it is not illegal for citizens to
possess pictures of the Dalai Lama, it is illegal to distribute them or to
display them, since that could be interpreted as incitement to separatist
activities. In January 2006, authorities in Shigatse Prefecture reportedly
arrested Phuntsok Tsering, the chant master of Magar Dhargyeling
Monastery, on charges of possessing a portrait of the Dalai Lama. In April
2005, the Tibet Information Network reported raids in a Tibetan border
town in which officials reportedly entered the homes of Tibetan residents
and confiscated pictures and books that contained speeches of the Dalai
Lama.

IV. Expanding U.S. Outreach and Public Diplomacy in Tibet and Xinjiang

The U.S. government should:

urge the Chinese government to allow a U.S. government presence, such as
consulates in Lhasa, Tibet and Urumqi, Xinjiang, which would be able to
monitor religious freedom and other human rights conditions; and


strengthen its efforts to highlight conditions faced by Uighur Muslims and
Tibetan Buddhists by:


addressing religious freedom and other human rights concerns in bilateral
discussions;
increasing the number of educational opportunities in the United States
that are available to religious and other leaders from these regions, in
order to enhance their understanding of religious freedom and other human
rights according to international standards;
creating legal clinics to assist those in areas of high concentrations of
Uighur Muslim and Tibetan Buddhist populations to enforce their human
rights under the Chinese Constitution and international law, building on
existing programs that serve other ethnic minority areas in China;
expanding ongoing assistance to civil society programs that promote
Tibetan culture, language, and social welfare and developing similar
programs for Uighurs;

increasing the number and frequency of broadcasts in the Tibetan and
Uighur languages by the Voice of America and Radio Free Asia; and using
official U.S. delegations traveling in the region and other means to
disseminate among local populations documents on international human
rights standards in local languages.

http://www.savetibet.org/news/newsitem.php?id=966

International Campaign for Tibet
1825 Jefferson Place NW
Washington, DC 20036
United States of America
Phone: (202) 785-1515
Fax: (202) 785-4343
info at savetibet.org