News From Other Sites
China’s Tibet tourism statistics just don’t add up
By Simon Denyer and Congcong Zhang, 6 October 2016 – The Washington Post Depending on your perspective, the official statistics for the number of tourists flooding into Tibet are either impressive, or downright scary. The Chinese government says 23 million visitors will enter the Tibetan Autonomous Region this year, an read more →
The absurd face of China’s censorship: Bookstore tears out Taiwan page from Webster’s
Simon Denyer and Luna Lin, The Washington Post, 13 October 2016 Censorship, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart once observed, “reflects a society’s lack of confidence in itself.” This week, the Chinese government’s lack of confidence was on display as reports emerged that a state-run bookstore in Shanghai had opened read more →
Brics summit in Goa: After isolating Pakistan, India must call China’s bluff
The Firstpost, 13 October 2016 Having isolated Pakistan in the international community reasonably effectively, India will come face to face with China, Pakistan’s mentor and accomplice, at the two-day Brics summit in Goa this weekend. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to at least politely confront Chinese President Xi Jinping read more →
The alphabet soup at Goa
The Hindu, 13 October 2016 As Indian foreign policy looks westwards, the BRICS summit offers India an opportunity to calibrate its outreach to multiple powers. This weekend will see Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his foreign policy team undertake a complex and significant manoeuvre. This comes at a time when read more →
A Crack of Daylight Enters Chinese Court Proceedings
China rape victim’s mother Tang Hui (L) sits in the Hunan Provincial People’s High Court in Changsha, central China’s Hunan province on July 15, 2013. The court awarded damages to the mother of a rape victim after she was sent to a labour camp for demanding her daughter’s attackers be read more →
The Cultural Revolution in Tibet: A Photographic Record
The New York Times /Sinosphere /By LUO SILING OCT. 3, 2016 In 1999, the Tibetan writer Tsering Woeser came across Wang Lixiong’s book “Sky Burial: The Fate of Tibet.” On finishing it, she sent Mr. Wang photographs taken by her father, who was with the People’s Liberation Army when it entered read more →
China says tourism is Tibet’s best hope. But can its culture survive the onslaught?
The Washington Post /By Simon Denyer October 6 LULANG FOLK VILLAGE, China — The original Tibetan village here was bulldozed five years ago. What has replaced it is Lulang Folk Village, a postcard-ready replica, a Disney-esque version of an age-old settlement in the high forest. Grand, ornate buildings in Tibetan read more →
‘Never imprison my mind’: Hong Kong lawmakers quote Gandhi, insult China
James Griffiths, CNN, 12 October 2016 Hong Kong (CNN) — The first day of the new Hong Kong parliament descended into farce as several young lawmakers staged curse-laden protests at the swearing in of city’s Legislative Council. “I do solemnly swear that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance read more →
China-India ties are under stress, need recalibration: Former NSA Shivshankar Menon
The Firstpost, 12 October 2016 Washington: Sino-India relationship, which is under stress, needs to be “recalibrated” as the 1988 arrangement is no longer an ‘effective tool’ with the changed situation, former national security advisor Shivshankar Menon has said ahead of President Xi Jinping’s visit to India. “India-China relationship is under read more →
A romantic opera in Tibet just happens to bolster China’s historical position there
The Washington Post /By Simon Denyer October 11 at 2:34 AM It is an epic tale of love between a teenage princess and a noble emperor, of the first bonds of friendship between China and Tibet that sprung up more than 15 centuries ago. It is a tale of how read more →
China targets parents in new religion rules for Xinjiang
Ben Blanchard, Reuters, 12 October 2016 BEIJING (Reuters) – Parents and guardians in China’s heavily Muslim region of Xinjiang who encourage or force their children into religious activities will be reported to the police, the government said on Wednesday while unveiling new education rules. Hundreds of people have died in read more →
Over 1,000 protesters stand before Chinese defense ministry
Associated Press, 11 October 2016 BEIJING (AP) — More than 1,000 protesters walked and chanted in front of China’s defense ministry Tuesday, the latest apparent demonstration by soldiers as the world’s largest standing military modernizes and downsizes. The protesters stood for several hours in front of the Bayi building in read more →
In Tibet, history bows down before propaganda in the tale of a royal romance
Simon Denyer, The Washington Post, 11 October 2016 It is an epic tale of love between a teenage princess and a noble emperor, of the first bonds of friendship between China and Tibet that sprung up more than 15 centuries ago. It is a tale of how China brought civilization read more →
Imprisoned Chinese minority scholar given human rights award
Ilham Tohti, an outspoken scholar of China’s Turkic Uighur ethnic minority in this file photo. Associated Press, 11 October 2016 Prof. Tohti has “sought reconciliation by bringing to light repressive Chinese policies and Uighur grievances. This is information the Chinese government has sought to keep behind a veil of silence,” read more →
Tibet: a Narrative of Cultural Holocaust
Major General Mrinal Suman, Indian Military Issues: Progress through Debate Tibet continues to be an enigma to all visitors. My two visits have been no different. One sees massive Chinese investment in road and railway infrastructure. Modern skyscrapers are coming up at a frenetic pace to house migrants from the read more →