permaculture

["Lawrence F. London, Jr." <lflj@intrex.net>]

BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | China keeping tight grip on Tibet
<http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7433659.stm>
Page last updated at 16:32 GMT, Tuesday, 3 June 2008 17:32 UK
China keeping tight grip on Tibet

By Michael Bristow
BBC News, China

Chinese paramilitary police patrol Lhasa, Tibet, on 27 March 2008
Chinese officials say little about what is happening in Tibet

China appears to be maintaining a tight grip over Tibetan areas, nearly three months after a series of anti-Beijing 
protests and riots.

The government suggests life in areas inhabited by Tibetans is returning to 
normal, but evidence suggests otherwise.

Security is tight, Tibetans face travel restrictions, and monks and nuns have 
been forced to attend re-education classes.

Chinese tourists are once again being allowed to visit the Himalayan region, 
but not many are making the trip.

Foreigners are banned. It is difficult to get information about what is going on in Tibet and nearby provinces that are 
home to large numbers of Tibetans.

Chinese central and local government officials - who keep a tight rein on information at the best of times - are saying 
little.

Back to normal?

The Tibetan Autonomous Region's foreign affairs office did not respond to a series of faxed questions from the BBC about 
the current situation.

The region's Public Security Bureau also failed to reply to requests for 
information.

Dalai Lama in Nottingham, England, on 24 May 2008
Nuns have been forced to denounce the Dalai Lama, it is claimed

David Kramer, US Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labour, got a similar 
response when he visited China last week.

He was in Beijing to discuss human rights issues with Chinese officials, and directly asked for an update on the latest 
developments in Tibet.

He appeared to get little out of his Chinese counterparts.

"We did not get information on numbers [of people arrested]," he told 
journalists.

Despite the lack of verifiable information, the government-controlled media gives the impression that life is returning 
to normal.

One recent article in the English-language China Daily said Tibet was expecting tourists to flock back to sites such as 
Lhasa's Potala Palace.

But they appear not to be going back in significant numbers.

One top travel agent has not sent a single tour group since the unrest broke 
out; another is offering discounts.

Information from other sources also suggests life has not returned to normal 
in Tibetan areas.

Smoke in Lhasa after Tibetan riots on 14 March 2008
The death toll from March's Tibetan protests could be as high as 250

Thubten Samphel, spokesman for the Tibetan government-in-exile, said China is 
restricting the lives of ordinary people.

"At the moment, we are receiving very little information. There are restrictions on telephone calls into Tibet and 
coming out," he said.

The spokesman, based in Dharamsala, India, said Beijing officials had also stopped ordinary Tibetans from leaving China 
for Nepal and India.

He added that occasional protests by monks and nuns were continuing - even if they were quickly stopped by Chinese 
security forces.

Angry nuns

The Free Tibet Campaign said 54 nuns were arrested a few weeks ago after staging a protest in Garze County in Sichuan 
Province.

It said the nuns were angry because they were being forced to denounce the 
Dalai Lama, Tibetan Buddhism's spiritual leader.

Renouncing the Dalai Lama - who lives in exile in India - appears part of a general re-education campaign being forced 
on monks and nuns.

One Tibetan monk, who lives at a monastery in southern Gansu Province, told the BBC he attended re-education sessions 
every other day.

Tibetan monk
Activists say sporadic protests continue in Tibet

"Communist Party officials talk to us about how to love our county [China]," 
he said.

The monk said the situation in his town was relatively calm, but the People's Armed Police was maintaining a visible 
presence.

"The police question and beat any Tibetan they want. I have seen this with my own 
eyes," he said.

Spokesman Thubten Samphel fears the Chinese are increasing the amount of repression - free from the prying eyes of 
outsiders.

Foreign reporters are banned from going to Tibet and other Tibetan areas, and there is no word on when that ban will be 
lifted.

Roadblocks

There are also roadblocks on highways leading into Tibet.

The Chinese crackdown follows unrest that began in Lhasa on 10 March.

Monks from several monasteries began a series of protests to mark the 49th anniversary of a failed uprising against 
Chinese rule.

These protest turned into riots, during which Tibetans targeted Han Chinese 
people who had moved into Lhasa.

Tibetan students living in India hold a rally on 28 May 2008
The unrest has triggered pro-Tibet demonstrations around the world

China says 18 innocent civilians and one police officer died in the riots.

The Tibetan government-in-exile said about 250 died, most of whom were 
Tibetans killed in the ensuing crackdown.

Over the last couple of months, hundreds of Tibetans have been arrested, with the first batch of 30 tried and jailed 
earlier this month.

China said they received fair trials, but this is contested by Tibetans 
abroad and human rights organisations.

Even on this one issue, there is no agreement on the facts of what is 
currently going on in Tibet.

TENSION IN TIBET
KEY STORIES
Dalai Lama sees change in China
Dalai Lama addresses UK MPs
Beijing 'to talk to Dalai aides'
China stands firm on Tibet relay
FEATURES AND ANALYSIS
The Dalai Lama The Dalai Lama
A profile of the Tibetan spiritual leader, now a symbol for the Tibetan cause
Tibetan monk speaks out
Tibetan monks: A controlled life
Tibet's unsettled borders
listen Jailed protester
BACKGROUND
Guide: Inside Tibet
The Tibet issue: China's view
The Tibet issue: Tibetan view
Q&A: China and Tibet
Key places and events
EYEWITNESS
Tibetans describe unrest
Chinese react to violence