Thursday, July 4, 2013

Week Ending July 5, 2013

International Tibet Network News Digest & Analysis: 5 July 2013
Self-Immolations, Protests, and Restrictions in Tibet
China implements measures to appoint political monks in guise of spiritual teachers - TCHRD
5 July | Despite verbal news of 'experimental' policy changes regarding displaying the Dalai Lama's portrait, no written permission in the form of documents endorsing a policy change was distributed among these monasteries indicating that the authorities are unsure of how the trial measures on the Dalai Lama will play out over time. Now new regulations give Party authorities the power to appoint Buddhist instructors.
http://www.tchrd.org/2013/07/china-implements-measures-to-appoint-political-monks-in-guise-of-spiritual-teachers/

Tibetan Monk Detained After Disrupting Government Celebration - RFA
2 July | Chinese authorities in Tibet have detained a young monk, Lobsang Gendun (20) after he disrupted official celebrations of Chinese Communist Party rule by shouting slogans calling for Tibetan independence in the Chamdo prefecture of the Tibet Autonomous Region.
http://www.rfa.org/english/news/tibet/disrupting-07022013144605.html

US Envoy Shown a 'Peaceful' Lhasa During Visit to Tibet - RFA
28 June | A visit to Tibet’s regional capital Lhasa by a senior U.S. diplomat was highly staged, with all signs of a typically heavy security presence removed from central areas in the city before his delegation’s arrival, according to a source inside Tibet.
http://www.rfa.org/english/news/tibet/shown-06282013155437.html
News
As Tibetans celebrate the Dalai Lama’s 78th birthday, a video snapshot of Tibet Lobby Day - BoingBoing
3 July | Xeni Jardin traveled to Washington, DC to document a group of Tibetan-American activists asking lawmakers to open up immigration doors for political refugees, and hold China accountable for human rights.
Contested renovation in Tibet capital complete - Fox News
2 July | Chinese state media reported that the 1.5 billion yuan ‘renovation’ project in Lhasa around the Jokhang Temple is ‘complete’.
Embassy Row: Unlocking Tibet - Washington Times
2 July | The American embassy in China released photos of US Ambassador Gary Locke’s three-day visit to Tibet with family and embassy staff.


Opinion and Analysis
Show solidarity with Tibet, EU urged - Public Service Europe
3 July | According to Elena Gaita, the people of the Baltic know what it is to face political persecution, so the Lithuanian EU presidency would be an appropriate time to facilitate engagement between the Dalai Lama and China.
The ‘Mani Stones’ in an ‘Environmental Migrants Village’ by Woeser - High Peaks Pure Earth
1 July | Woeser writes about her encounters with the people directly affected by the Chinese government aims since 2006 to “Build a New Socialist Countryside”, with the policy of re-settling nomads and herdsmen, based on her travels in 2007 and also 2012.
Conversing with Clare Harris, Author of “The Museum on the Roof of the World” - Cerise Press
1 July | Dechen Pemba interviews Clare Harris about her research on Tibetan artefacts in museums, the relationships between art and politics and representation, and the contemporary international Tibetan art scene.


Posted by at No comments:

Thursday, June 27, 2013

Week Ending June 28, 2013

International Tibet Network News Digest & Analysis: 28 June 2013
Self-Immolations, Protests, and Restrictions in Tibet
China: End Involuntary Rehousing and Relocation of Tibetans - HRW
27 June | Since 2006, over two million Tibetans have been “rehoused” – through government-ordered renovation or construction of new houses – in the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), while hundreds of thousands of nomadic herders in the eastern part of the Tibetan plateau have been relocated or settled in “New Socialist Villages.”
Tibetans Openly Allowed to Revere the Dalai Lama in Two Chinese Provinces - RFA
27 June | Chinese authorities in Tibetan-populated areas of Qinghai and Sichuan are allowing monks to openly venerate the Dalai Lama as a religious leader but not as a “political” figure, according to sources citing official statements introducing the “experimental” new policy.
http://www.rfa.org/english/news/tibet/allowed-06262013180033.html
Related
Rumour Watch: Will China Allow Limited Veneration of the Dalai Lama? - Tea Leaf Nation
26 June | Despite lack of official confirmation, rumors are spreading online about the possibility of legal religious veneration of the Dalai Lama in some areas.
News
China resettles nearly 2 million Tibetans, says Human Rights Watch - BBC
27 June | Tightened security over the entire Tibetan plateau: grid monitoring systems, forced resettlement into ‘socialist villages’, and unconfirmed reports of an experimental policy change supposedly allowing Tibetans to venerate the Dalai Lama as a religious leader.

Pillay: 20 years after historic human rights breakthrough, much work remains - OHCHR
27 June | Navi Pillay said there had been significant achievements since a historic human rights document was adopted in Vienna 20 years ago, but there have also been many setbacks and “the magnificent construction is still only half built.”
US Ambassador to China visits Tibet amid wave of self-immolations - Quartz
27 June | Gary Locke is on a three-day trip with members of his family and several embassy staff to meet with residents and government officials and raise concerns about the “deteriorating human rights situation,” specifically the self-immolations by Tibetans in protest against Chinese rule.
Hague seeks to calm waters over Tibet - SCMP
25 June | British Foreign Secretary William Hague told his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi yesterday that "London recognises Tibet as part of China".
Opinion and Analysis
New challenges to Tibet policy from inside China - ICT
27 June | Proposals to display portraits of the Dalai Lama, end denunciation of the Tibetan leader, and lessen police presence in monasteries have been discussed at a series of meetings in Qinghai, according to several unofficial Tibetan sources.
“My response on Twitter to the Peoples Daily concerning the situation of Lhasa’s old town” by Woeser - High Peaks Pure Earth
24 June | Woeser’s blogpsot from May 18 responding to counter-reports from Chinese media on the condition and ‘developments’ taking place in Lhasa.
Tibet: China Yet Again Not Obliging Human Rights Changes - UNPO
25 June | The EU is having difficulties again being in dialogue with the Chinese government regarding pressing concerns such as the death penalty, freedom of speech and other human rights issues.
Reaching for the sky: A policy solution to gender inequality - Phayul
24 June | Tenzin Palkyi and Tenzin Dickyi argue that the CTA “ is hampered by a weak Women’s Empowerment Policy that doesn’t even acknowledge the existence of gender discrimination in our society” and “the present gender inequality in Tibetan society is a serious problem that Sikyong Lobsang Sangay’s Kashag has a real opportunity to address by implementing a credible Women’s Empowerment Policy that can be a lasting legacy”.

Posted by at No comments:

Friday, June 21, 2013

Week Ending June 21, 2013

International Tibet Network News Digest & Analysis: 21 June 2013

Self-Immolations, Protests, and Restrictions in Tibet
Security in Tibet: Grid Locked - The Economist
22 June | Grid-based surveillance in Tibet escalates; “Nothing must leave the grid” is Dongcheng’s motto, meaning problems must be nipped in the bud.

Tibetan writer Woeser again placed under house arrest - RFA
20 June | “We have been placed under house arrest again,” Woeser wrote on her blog on Thursday, saying that she and her husband Wang Lixiong were taken into custody by police and state security agents in a suburban district of Beijing municipality on Wednesday afternoon before being taken home.

Clampdown imposed as nun secretly cremated after burning protest - RFA
17 June | Chinese authorities have moved to block demonstrations of support for a Tibetan nun, Wanchen Dolma (31), who was secretly cremated after she died days after her self-immolation protest in Sichuan province.
http://www.rfa.org/english/news/tibet/clampdown-06172013153330.html

News
Xi looks to Mao for inspiration to solve corruption - SCMP
19 June | The Communist Party, under new general secretary Xi Jinping, is delving deeper into the legacy of the late Mao Zedong for inspiration to help clean up its ranks amid rising disillusionment over widespread official corruption.
http://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1263927/xi-looks-legacy-mao-inspiration-solve-corruption

China completes monitoring scheme for Tibet - Al Jazeera
19 June | Government official Nyima Doje told state media on Wednesday that the scheme "is conducive to protecting citizens' personal information and curbing the spread of detrimental information". Tibetans are already closely watched due to decades of unrest in protest at Chinese rule.

Syria ruled G8 summit, Tibet feels excluded - HNGN
19 June | At the conclusion of the two-day G8 summit in Northern Ireland global economic leaders issued a joint communiqué vowing full support for a political solution to the Syrian civil war but Tibet advocates felt excluded from the joint communiqué. http://www.hngn.com/articles/5715/20130619/syria-ruled-g8-summit-tibet-feels-excluded.htm
Opinion and Analysis
Tibet policy: Bold new proposals - The Economist
22 June | A combination of economic development and political repression was meant to reconcile Tibetans to Chinese rule and wean them off their loyalty to the Dalai Lama, the exiled spiritual leader. Instead disaffection is still rife, especially among the young.

China’s “Benefit the Masses” Campaign Surveilling Tibetans - Human Rights Watch
19 June | The Chinese government, under the rationale of a campaign to improve rural living standards, has sent more than 20,000 officials and communist party cadres to Tibetan villages to undertake intrusive surveillance of people, carry out widespread political re-education, and establish partisan security units.

Gateway to Lhasa - Shadow Tibet
18 June | Jamyang Norbu writes on Tibetan musicians Dadon and Tenzin Gompo and the song “Gateway to Lhasa” with recordings and lyrics in Tibetan, English, and Chinese.

Public Talk in Sydney - Youtube (ATC)
16 June | Kyinzom Dhongdue, Communications and Government Relations Manager at Australia Tibet Council, speaks on the power of grassroots support for Tibet at the Dalai Lama’s public talk in Sydney.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5ZD_eUOVOs
Posted by at No comments:

Thursday, June 13, 2013

Week Ending June 14, 2013

International Tibet Network News Digest & Analysis: 14 June 2013
Self-Immolations, Protests, and Restrictions in Tibet
Two Tibetan singers secretly sentenced but whereabouts unknown - TCHRD
13 June | Singers Pema Trinley (22) and Chakdor (32) from Meuruma nomadic village, had recorded and distributed a music DVD containing songs about current situation in Tibet including self-immolation protests, as well as songs in praise of the Dalai Lama, Panchen Lama, Kirti Rinpoche, and Lobsang Sangay. They were detained for 6 months and sentenced to 2 years in prison, but there whereabouts are currently unknown.
Tibetan student leader jailed, Nuns released - RFA
12 June | A court in northwestern China’s Qinghai province has jailed Wangchuk Dorje for helping lead a student protest last year, while authorities in neighboring Sichuan released two nuns and another woman after they completed prison terms for their roles in protests challenging rule by Beijing, sources said.
After serving 5 years, Tibetan political prisoner comes out in poor health - Phayul
11 June | Tsewang Dakpa, a monk at the Jangang Monastery in Drango region of eastern Tibet was released on June 5. According to Tibetan exile sources, Dakpa, who is in his late 20s, is in “poor health” and one of his hands is “severely injured.”
Tibetan nun sets herself ablaze in new self-immolation protest - RFA
11 June | A Tibetan nun set herself ablaze on Tuesday during a large religious gathering in China’s Sichuan province in protest against Beijing’s rule in Tibetan areas, sources said.
Related
Tibetan nun self-immolates in apparent anti-China protest - VOA
11 June | The unidentified nun self-immolated Tuesday afternoon near a monastery in the Tawu district. Her condition was not immediately known, as Chinese security personnel took her to a nearby hospital. Sources say all communications to and from the district have been blocked and travel restrictions have been imposed.
News
Chinese diplomats threaten French journalist after Tibet report - Reporters Without Borders
13 June | Chinese embassy personnel went to the France24’s headquarters in Paris to demand the documentary’s withdrawal from its website. The Chinese embassy in Bangkok then threatened Cyril Payen by telephone after he arrived in Thailand.
Next Dalai Lama could be a woman, Tibetan leader says - France 24
13 June | "If the circumstances are such that a female Dalai Lama is more useful, then automatically a female Dalai Lama will come," he told a press conference in Sydney to launch a 10-day tour of Australia.
Katzenberg’s Tibet film won’t be controversial, he maintains - Contact Music
10 June | Mention Tibet and the image of the exiled Dalai Lama and the brutal suppression of Buddhist protesters comes to mind, but Jeffrey Katzenberg apparently believes he has found a way to skirt the controversy with his upcoming The Tibet Code, based on a ten-book Chinese series of novels that has sold over 10 million copies in China.
Sinopec Southern to explore Tibet’s Lunpola basin - Oil and Gas Journal
10 June | Sinopec Southern Exploration Co. of China and the Oil and Gas Resources Research Center of Geological Survey Bureau of Ministry of Land Resources signed an agreement on joint exploration for oil and gas in selected areas of the Lunpola basin in Tibet.
Climate change on the Tibetan plateau - The Guardian
10 June | Photojournalist Sean Gallagher talks about his latest project, Meltdown: climate change and environmental degradation on the Tibetan plateau, a series of photographs that capture melting glaciers, grassland degradation and the loss of Tibetan culture.
Opinion and Analysis
Questions and concerns about developments in Lhasa - International Tibet Network
14 June | A new report targeting UNESCO on the subject of current ‘development’ construction in Lhasa and how it relates to World Heritage Site guidance. http://issuu.com/internationaltibetnetwork/docs/unesco_lhasareport_2013
Looking back at the past few years of not celebrating Losar - High Peaks Pure Earth
13 June | Woser’s blog from February 2013 discussing the effects of the recent custom of not celebrating Losar since 2009.
An open plea: Xi and Obama can accomplish one thing - Committee to Protect Journalists
6 June | Bob Dietz advocates for Xi Jinping and Barack Obama to agree to release jailed Tibetan filmmaker Dhondup Wangchen so he can join his family in the United States.


Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)