Tibetan Headlines
Jun 9: Calls for Resignation
230 rights groups are calling for the resignation of United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachalet following her trip to China which the rights groups regard as condoning China’s propaganda and human rights abuses. Signatories include Tibetan, Hong Kong, Southern Mongolian, Uyghur, Chinese democracy and international human rights advocacy groups. She did not visit Tibet nor had she ever mentioned Tibet during her four years in post.
Jun 9: Celebrating His Holiness
A photo exhibition has opened in Ulaanbatar in Mongolia to celebrate the Buddhist holy month of Vesak from June 14, together with HH the Dalai Lama’s birthday on July 6. The exhibition portrays the life of His Holiness; it was produced by Gandan Tegchenling Monastery and the Diluva Hutugtu Foundation and the launch attended by representatives of the Indian and United States embassies, along with scholars, artists and journalists.
Jun 8: No Contacts With Family
Rinchen Tsultrim, a Tibetan monk who is serving a four and half years prison term on a charge of speaking about Tibetan political and social issues on social media, is still being denied contact with his family - while other prison inmates are allowed monthly family visits - reports Radio Free Asia. He was detained in July 2019 in Ngaba county and charged with separatism or “working to split the country”.
Jun 8: Tibetan Re-elected
Bhutila Karpoche, the Tibetan-Canadian MPP, has been re-elected as the MPP of Parkdale-High Park, Canada. Khenpo Sonam Tenphel, the Speaker of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile, has congratulated her saying, “As a Tibetan, you have always voiced and apprised the government and the people of Canada regarding the critical issue of Tibet and the danger of extinguishing the Tibetan Culture and heritage under the Chinese brutal regime.”
Jun 8: Support From Taiwan
The Taipei International Book Exhibition is underway in Taiwan, with Tibet represented by Ganjong Publication, a branch of the Office of Tibet, Taiwan. Representative Bawa Kelsang Gyaltsen gave a presentation with information about books published by Ganjong Publication in the Chinese language; he thanked Ganjong’s volunteers and also Taiwan, saying that Taiwan is the “only Chinese speaking place where Chinese books on Tibet’s issue are permitted to [be] published”.
Jun 7: More Data Collection
Tibetans living in Kham [Ch: Sichuan] are now required to provide the authorities with details of the Covid status of their relatives living abroad, including proof of vaccination, phone numbers and social media accounts. Failure to comply risks losing benefits such as housing subsidies, reports Radio Free Asia. Officials have started doing door-to-door visits to collect data in Drago following a similar recent order there.
Jun 7: Parliamentary Review
A parliamentary review committee is underway to look at the viability of Gang Jong Development Finance Private Ltd, a Central Tibetan Administration Department of Finance initiative aimed at lending money to Tibetans in the exile community to boost the economy. The committee will undertake a risk assessment, analyse the financial scope of the initiative and look at legal and investment requirements, reporting back before the next parliament session.
Jun 6: Sikyong in South Settlements
Sikyong Penpa Tsering, President of the Central Tibetan Administration, is currently visiting the Tibetan settlements in Karnataka states, South India. This is his first official visit since his appointment as Sikyong last year. During his visits, he is particularly focussing on discussions around the implementation of an app-based demographic survey and the introduction of e-governance and digitisation of the official archives.
Jun 6: Dharamshala Settlement Officer
Kunchok Migmar has been elected as the new Settlement Officer for Dharamshala for the three-year term of office. He gained 1,149 votes, beating the incumbent Settlement Officer Kunga Tsering’s 690 votes. Kunchok Migmar was born in Tibet, he studied at Tibetan Children’s Village Gopalpur school before going on to read Political Science at Delhi University. Since 2018 he has been Sponsorship Secretary for the Dharamshala Settlement Office.
Jun 5: Remembering Tiananmen Square
The 33rd anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre of 1989 in China was marked in Dharamshala with an event organised by Students for a Free Tibet. The event included a “photo action” protest with activists recreating the act of defiance by “tank man” during the 1989 Tiananmen square protest: “tank man” became an icon of the struggle for freedom around the world.
Jun 5: World Environment Day
An awareness-raising event to mark World Environment Day was held in McLeod Ganj main square to draw attention to the environmental crisis in Tibet precipitated by the Chinese occupation there. The event was organised by the Tibetan Women’s Association and included a photo exhibition. World Environment Day is marked each year on June 5 to spread awareness about protecting and nurturing the environment; this year’s theme is “only one earth”.
Jun 3: Persecution of Buddhism
United States Secretary of State Joe Blinken has commented on the recently-released 2021 Report on International Religious Freedom, highlighting China’s persecution of religious practitioners, including in Tibet where Buddhist religious statues have been destroyed, Tibetan Buddhists face discrimination and China continues to crack down on Tibetan Buddhists by arresting or targeting those who work on the preservation and promotion of the Tibetan language, culture and religion.
Jun 3: Contact Details Required
Authorities in the Kham Kardze region of Tibetan have ordered Tibetans to provide contact details of their relatives living in exile, including phone numbers and social media accounts. Details of their Covid-19 vaccination details are specifically sought, reports Radio Free Asia's Tibetan service. Tibetans in Drago county were warned that they will lose housing subsidies and other government support if they do not provide the required information.
Jun 3: Open Letter to Xi
The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy has sent an open letter to Chinese President Xi Jinping demanding an immediate end to China's forced cultural assimilation policy in Tibet. China's Second Generation Ethnic Policy includes the replacement of Tibetan-run schools with Chinese-medium schools which, says TCHRD, is contrary to Article 4 of the Chinese Constitution which mandates freedom to use traditional ethnic spoken and written languages.
Jun 2: Tighter Control
Monasteries in Tibet will be subject to tighter financial control by the Chinese authorities. The new Measures for the Financial Management of Religious Activity Sites, jointly formulated by China’s National Administration for Religious Affairs and the Ministry of Finance, will control the finances of all religious venues in China, but the effect will be more intense in Tibet owing to the crucial role monasteries and nunneries play in Tibetan society.