June 12, 2020
US State Dept International Religious Freedom documents widespread CCP interference in Tibetan religious practices.
Dharamshala: The US Department of State released its annual Report on International Religious Freedom (2019) on 10 June, as required by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998.
At a press release, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Ambassador Samuel Brownback, who directed the publication of the report fielded questions from reporters.
Secretary of State Pompeo reported positive improvements in some religious freedom developments around the world but emphasized that “But there’s also a great darkness over parts of the world where people of faith are persecuted or denied the right to worship…And in China, state-sponsored repression against all religions continues to intensify. The Chinese Communist Party is now ordering religious organizations to obey CCP leadership and infuse communist dogma into their teachings and practice of their faith. The mass detentions of Uighurs in Xinjiang continues. So does the repression of Tibetans and Buddhists and Falun Gong and Christians.”
In the report’s China section, Tibet, Xinjiang, Hong Kong, and Macau are highlighted as areas of noted repression from the Chinese Communist Party. The report made it clear that since Tibetan identity and Tibetan Buddhism are often tied together, it was difficult for writers of the report to clearly delineate whether a particular source of discrimination came from ethnic or religious hostility, but it was more clear that Tibetan monks and nuns, who are highly visible given their traditional religious garments, face religiously motivated discrimination. Read the section on Tibet here.
The report discussed the lengths to which Tibetan Buddhists and Uyghur Muslims are often faced with job discrimination and accommodation discrimination when travelling. It was reported in May that some Airbnbs and housing listings explicitly deny Uighur and Tibetan guests. Tibetan college graduates are made to denounce the Dalai Lama and to proclaim loyalty to the CCP in order to be just considered for government jobs.
The Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom of July 2019 provided a necessary publicized forum to discuss religious freedom and religious discrimination for those of many faith groups, including Tibetans.
The report details the “Religious Freedom Challenges in China” session of the forum, which gave special attention to the widespread discrimination and abuse inflicted upon Tibetans and Uyghurs especially. On July 18, the last day of the ministerial, Vice President Pence had said, “The American people will always stand in solidarity with the people of all faiths in the People’s Republic of China.”
The arbitrary detention, and hence, the disappearance of Buddhist monk Lobsang Thapke, Lobsang Dorje, and Sangay Gyatso, from Kirti Monastery were noted. Arrested on different dates, the whereabouts and conditions of these monks are unknown. The report also went on to list Tibetans whose whereabouts are still unknown since 2018: “Karma, a village leader in the TAR who refused to allow local authorities to conduct mining activities near the sacred Sebra Zagyen mountain, and Gangye, a man from Sog (Suoxian) County, Nagchu (Nagqu) Prefecture, TAR, detained in May 2018 for possessing religious books written by the Dalai Lama and CDs featuring the religious leader’s teachings…Dorje Rabten, who in September 2018 protested against government policies restricting young people from becoming monks; Tenzin Gelek, who protested Dorje’s detention; Lobsant Thamke, who was arrested in 2018 and sentenced on July 30 to four years in prison on unknown charges; Lobsang Dorje, who was arrested sometime in August 2018; and Thubpa, whom police took from the Trotsik Monastery in Ngaba TAP, Sichuan Province, sometime toward the end of 2017.”
The Panchen Lama’s abduction and forced disappearance by the Chinese Communist Party was also highlighted since 2019 marked Gedhun Choekeyi Nyima’s 30th birthday. The true Panchen Lama had not been seen for over 25 years, and to add insult, Tibetan monks and nuns are sometimes forced to pray to Gyaltsen Norbu, a CCP appointed, illegitimate Panchen Lama.
The report lists testimonies of previously detained Tibetans who claimed the Chinese officials routinely inflicted torture. From permanent eye-damaging to electric shocking, the former prisoners are adamant the Chinese officials inhumanely employ torture on Tibetan prisoners. Radio Free Asia in July reported the detainment and political reeducation of 3,500 monks and nuns from the Yachen Gar Tibetan Buddhist Institute: “…where [the prisoners] learned and performed patriotic songs and dances praising the CCP and watched propaganda films each day. Authorities forced the nuns to wear military clothing. If the nuns wept, authorities considered it evidence of disloyalty to the state and subjected them to severe punishments, including beatings, extending their confinement in the detention centers, and refusing permission for the nuns to receive gifts of food or clothing from visiting family members.” There are also numerous reports of Chinese officials sexually abusing the detained Tibetan nuns.
The testimonies of Tibetans who witness the ongoing militarization of their Tibetan communities was noted. It has been increasingly common for Tibetan holidays and other politically or religiously sensitive events to be met with plain clothed officers monitoring participating citizens. It has become so common, that one Tibetan has stated that militarization has become a part of their daily lives. In some cases, as in the case of the Dechen Shedrub prayer festival at Larung Gar and the Ganden Ngachoe festival, events are promptly banned, and parents are threatened to keep their children in compliance. In addition to the militarization and surveillance of religious activities, Tibetan monasteries and nunneries are increasingly controlled and restricted by CCP appointed officials who overview reincarnation and other religious activities.
-Filed by Office of Tibet, Washington DC
