DHARAMSHALA, September 14: “Control over religious practice and the day-to-day management of monasteries and other religious institutions continued to be extraordinarily tight” says a new report on religious freedom in Tibet adding that "several monks also reportedly committed suicide as a result of the harsh conditions and religious restrictions."
The US State Department in its annual report on International Religious Freedom released Tuesday expressed continued concern over the protection of fundamental human rights in Tibet citing that “the government's level of respect for religious freedom remained poor in Tibet”.
“Although China’s constitution protects religious freedom for all citizens but, in practice, the government generally enforced other laws and policies that restrict religious freedom,” the US State Department noted under the Tibet section of its report.
The report which monitored the period between July and December 2010 highlighted the ongoing social discrimination and restrictions that Tibetans face from government authorities and the majority Han Chinese.
“During the reporting period, residents continued to face societal discrimination, including, for example, being denied rooms at hotels in large cities, including Beijing, Shanghai, and Chengdu,” the report said.
“Local authorities frequently pressured parents, especially those who were CCP members or government employees, to withdraw their children from monasteries in their hometowns, private schools attached to monasteries, and Tibetan schools in India,” the report added.
The official paper also reported on the restrictions that U.S. diplomatic personnel faced from Chinese authorities during official visits to the Tibetan Autonomous Region, curtailing their “ability to talk openly with persons in Tibetan areas.”
Underscoring China’s vilification of the Tibetan spiritual leader His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the report noted that pictures of the Dalai Lama and Gendun Choekyi Nyima, whom the Dalai Lama and the overwhelming majority of Tibetan Buddhists recognise as the 11th Panchen Lama were removed by Chinese government officials from monasteries and private homes.
“Authorities prohibited the registration of names for children that included one or more of the names of the Dalai Lama or certain names included on a list of blessed names approved by the Dalai Lama,” the report finds.
The US State Department further said that the Chinese government’s "patriotic" education campaign at monasteries with “legal education” of monks and nuns as an increasingly major theme had become a “routine part of monastic management.”
“Authorities often forced monks and nuns to denounce the Dalai Lama and study materials praising the leadership of the CCP and the socialist system. Authorities also pressured monks and nuns to express allegiance to the government-recognised 11th Panchen Lama,” the report noted.
The U.S. government, in its report, protested the ongoing religious persecution and discrimination in Tibet and urged “government leaders to engage in constructive dialogue with the Dalai Lama and his representatives and address policies in Tibetan areas that have created tensions due to their effect on Tibetan religion, culture, and livelihoods, as well as the environment.”
“As we release this report, we reaffirm the role that religious freedom and tolerance play in building stable and harmonious societies,” Secretary Hillary Clinton said at the release of the report.
Source: Phayul.com
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