China claims Tibet has “Regional Ethnic Autonomy”
The Chinese government released a white paper yesterday describing their version of the military occupation of Tibet since 1950. The paper, entitled “Regional Ethnic Autonomy in Tibet” states that it aims to increase the understanding of China’s ethnic policy and convey the truth about Tibet to international community. The paper claims Tibet is an autonomous region that was peacefully liberated from the “fetters of imperialism.” It also claims to have improved the lives of Tibetans by changing their “old situation of poverty and backwardness and greatly enhancing the level of their own material, cultural and political life.” But Human Rights groups such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch continue to accuse the Chinese authorities of the systematic destruction of Tibetan Buddhist culture and the persecution of monks loyal to the Dalai Lama. In addition, there are charges of human rights abuses, lack of access to education, suppression of language and culture, endemic poverty and the failure of the judicial process in Tibet. His Holiness the Dalai Lama has not yet responded to the paper. Cinnamon Nippard spoke to Paul Bourke, Executive Officer of the Australia Tibet Council who refutes the claims by the Chinese government.