July 2021

འབྲེལ་གཏུགས་གསར་འཕྲིན།

Contact

A Digest of Tibetan Issues and News from Inside and Outside Tibet RGD No. HPENG/2013/51798 | Volume: XXIII Issue:01 | July 31, 2021

Resuming Life Amidst Uncertainty The Contact team is back at the printing press and we are resuming the printing of our monthly free publication after more than a year of pandemic lockdown and restrictions, despite the uncertainty that is still around us. We are relieved to know that the pandemic has slowed down in many other countries around the world and life is gradually getting back to normal, here in India the crisis has abated but, like the rest of the world, we are concerned there may be future rises in cases and we all live with the uncertainty. But if we have learnt anything from this pandemic, it is that “this too shall pass” and life goes on, a life governed by safety protocols.

Since March last year, we have been keeping up to date with the news online but we are determined to continue to fill the gap and publish our printed Contact. We still firmly believe there are people who prefer picking up a newsletter and reading it! During our break Continued on page 2

China Ups their Systematic Suppression of the Tibetan Language

by Tenzin Samten Tibetans living in Tibet are losing their right, and the facilities, to study in their native language in the face of the Chinese government’s systematic shutdown of schools whose primary medium of instruction was Tibetan. The latest school to be closed by the authorities was Sengdruk Taktse middle school in Darlak county of Golog in eastern Tibet on July 8.

No official reason for the closure was given.

“The school’s primary language of instruction is Tibetan and it provides Tibetan cultureContinued on page 5

Is India Spying on Tibetans?

By Mary Trewartha The Guardian published an article on July 22 suggesting that the Indian government is using spyware developed by Israel during their conflict with Saudi Arabia in 2017 to monitor the phones “of a top ring of advisers around the Dalai Lama”. Israel says it only sells the package – NSO Pegasus – to governments.

The article continues, saying that among the phones targeted were those of the former President of the Tibetan Government-in-Exile, Lobsang Sangay, and staff in the office of the Gyalwang Karmapa, in addition to “several other activists and clerics who are part of the Continued on page 4

International Spotlight on Xi’s Visit to Tibet

by Mary Trewartha Chinese President Xi Jinping has visited Tibet – his first visit there since becoming President in 2013. The visit was unannounced by Chinese state-controlled media.

Following the visit, which took place between July 21 and 23, Chinese state media Xinhua reported, “Chinese leader Xi Jinping has stressed fully implementing the guidelines of the Communist Party of China (CPC) for governing Tibet in a new era and writing a new chapter of lasting stability and high-quality development for the Continued on page 6 www.contactmagazine.net

Contact News

Contact News

Contact magazine

CONTACT IS PUBLISHED BY LHA CHARITABLE TRUST

Lha is an award-winning, grassroot and non-profit institute for social work and education based in Dharamshala, India. It is one of the largest social work organisations providing vital resources for Tibetan refugees, the local Indian population and people from the Himalayan regions.

Lha offers free language classes, livelihood skill trainings and many other programmes and activities.

For more information about Lha, please visit: www.lhacharitabletrust.org Lha Charitable Trust, Institute for Social Work & Education Lha Charitable Trust Lha contacts: office@lhasocialwork.org (0) 98823-23455 / 1892-220992 Please also see Lha’s additional websites: www.tibetnature.net www.samdhongrinpoche.com www.contactmagazine.net Contact Newsletter is published monthly by Lha Charitable Trust. It has been a popular source of news and information on Tibetan issues, and the Dharamshala community, for 22 years and is acknowledged in Lonely Planet and other international travel resources. It is available free of charge and distributed around Dharamshala, Delhi and various diplomatic missions in India. Copies are sent to Tibetan schools, settlements, offices and NGOs in India and abroad. Contact is updated daily on our website www.contactmagazine.net and Facebook page. Contact is registered under the Registrar Office of the Newspaper, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India; registration number HPENG/2013/51798.

Please Note: The articles, stories and other material in Contact represent the views of the authors and are not necessarily the views of the Contact staff or Lha Charitable Trust.

If you would like to contribute to Contact magazine please email us at editor@contactmagazine.net Contact reserves the right to edit all articles and contributions. www.contactmagazine.net Contact News Contact Magazine

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Resuming Life Amidst Uncertainity Continued from page 1

from printing last year, we published a special souvenir issue of children’s creative work, Children’s Writing and Drawing. We invited children to write and draw for Contact whilst schools were shut and there was a tremendous response and a great sense of participation, with very positive feedback. If we have to suspend printing Contact again this year we are planning something similar so keep your eyes online for any developments.

As we all know, the pandemic has affected everyone’s life in one way or another and we at Contact have had to make changes too. Contact is published by Lha Charitable Trust, and Lha has had to give up our rented office space in McLeod Ganj that many of you will be familiar with. We have shifted our office down to Ahimsa house, below His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s temple.

Ahimsa house is where our soup kitchen was based for so many years and where our long term volunteers have stayed in the past.

We are gradually picking up our projects and getting back to this new normal. The Contact team helped with Lha’s pandemic projects supporting the local community – see the Lha website for news of those.

Contact is posted to offices, libraries and individuals living outside Dharamshala and we also distribute it locally in hotels, restaurants and other public places here in this tourist hub, Dharamshala. Currently the only visitors to McLeod Ganj are local Indian tourists, so during this time we will focus more on posting the newsletter to libraries, schools, colleges, Tibetan institutions and individuals. If you would like to receive Contact on your doorstep, please feel free to send us your postal address at editor@contactmagazine.net.

And while travelling is restricted, we have no writers coming in to the office to write for us! Have you written for us in the past? Would you like to write for Contact? Please email us at editor@contactmagazine.net. We’d love to hear from you!

The Contact team would like to send warmest regards to all our readers and urge everyone to take care and stay positive.

Contact Magazine Managing Director : Dorji Kyi Editor-in-Chief : Jenny James Editor : Tenzin Samten Circulation Manager : Tsering Wangdue Designed by : Karma Ringzin Topgyal Published by Lha Charitable Trust

Contact newsletter is sponsored by the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy (TFD). TFD’s kind contribution has made this publication possible. We thank TFD for their continous support.

Contact magazine | July 2021 | Page No 2

Email:editor@contactmagazine.net Facebook: ContactNews Instagram : tibetan_news_brief Printed at Imperial Printing, Dharamshala Phone:01892 -222390 Email: ippdsala@gmail.com

News Features Arrests and Releases Inside Tibet Jul 26: Sentence Reduced Tsultrim Gyatso, a former monk at Labrang Monastery who was given a life sentence in 2009 by Sangchu Intermediate People’s court following his arrest in 2008, has had his sentence reduced: the People’s court claims he has “reformed” after showing “remorse”.

He is expected to be released in 2026 when he will be subject to seven years of 24/7 surveillance. He is reported to be in poor health.

Tsultrim is from Yigchung village in Sangchu county in Gansu province. During his protest in 2008, he called for the freedom of Tibetans and the return of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to Tibet.

Jul 22: Dozens Arrested Around 30 people have been arrested in eastern Tibet for celebrating His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s birthday – ­­­many more than previously reported. Tibet Watch, the UK-based Tibet advocacy and research organisation, says that only six of the 30 have been identified, and that the arrests are connected to increased digital surveillance operations in the area. They report heightened levels of fear and surveillance, with arbitrary detentions.

Jul 14: Two Arrested Two Tibetans, a man named Kunchok Tashi and a woman named Dzapo, both in their 40s, were arrested in Kardze [Ch: Ganzi] reports Radio Free Asia, for sharing images and documents, and reciting Tibetan prayers to celebrate His Holiness The Dalai Lama’s birthday. Restrictions are imposed on Tibetans, banning them from contacting foregn media and their families living in exile, making it extremely difficult for news of human rights violations to reach outside Tibet.

Jul 13: Four Arrested Four Tibetans, Loga, Dather, Wangchuk Kyi and Rinchen Sangpo were arrested in Serthar county in Tibet two days after local officials conducted widespread searches of mobile phones, looking for banned material. They are believed to have had pictures of His Holiness the Dalai Lama on their phones, which is illegal in Chinese-occupied Tibet. This news has been reported by Tibet Watch who have received photographic evidence of two to four police checking people’s phones

in streets, restaurants, grocery stores and karaoke bars for “politicially sensitive” content.

Jul 2: Writer Under Surveillance Pema Tso, an award winning Tibetan writer and teacher of the Tibetan language from Rebkong in in Amdo [Ch: Qinghai], is reported to be under close surveillance for owning sensitive political documents and books, and for contacting people outside Tibet, reports Radio Free Asia. Due to police suveillance, she has been unable to live a normal life or to meet other people and is now barred from attending any schools or lectures. She graduated from Qinghai Public University in 1987 as a Tibetan language major and has won many literary awards.

Jun 24: Prison Sentence Rinchen Tsultrim, 29, a Tibetan monk who was arrested in August 2019 on suspicion of “separatism”, was given a prison sentence of four years and six months earlier this year by a court in Chengdu, the capital of Kham [Ch: Sichuan]. News has only now emerged that he was accused of publishing articles on Tibet issues on his WeChat account. His family have been told they may visit; until now he has been held incommunicado. He is reportedly being held at Minayang Prison near Chengdu. The secrecy surrounding Rinchen’s imprisonment raises serious concerns about due process applied to the case and a fair trial being denied, and Amnesty International has raised concerns about him. Tsultrim comes from a farming family in Kashul village in Ngaba and has five siblings. He joined Nangshik Monastery of the Bon religion at the age of six.

Jun 21: Writer in Custody Lobsang Lhundup, 41, a writer whose pen name is Dhi Lhaden and who was arrested two years ago, has still not been brought to trial, reports Radio Free Asia. RFA says he was arrested after someone reported on the teaching materials he was using for his work at a cultural centre in Chengdu; that no information about his case has been released and he is not allowed visitors. Lhundup is a native of the Pema district of Golog Tibet Autonomous Prefecture. He became a monk at the age of 11 and studied at Larung Gar Tibetan Buddhist Academy. He has taught Buddhism at Drepung and Sera monasteries in Lhasa, the capital of Tibet. Lhundup’s parents learned in 2020 that his trial is still pending and that they were not allowed to meet him.

Contact magazine | July 2021| Page No 3

News Features Is India Spying on Tibetans?

Continued from page 1

exiled community in India”.

The Wire reports, “A massive trove of 50,000 numbers were accessed by French journalism’s non-profit Forbidden Stories and international human rights advocacy group, Amnesty International. This was then shared with 16 media houses, including The Wire, who investigated the phone numbers of the potential targets.”

Amnesty International’s security lab analysed the data and found traces of “Pegasus or signs of attempted infection”.

The Wire continues, “The phone numbers indicate that the targets may have been selected by an unknown Indiabased client of the NSO Group. The Indian government has never either acknowledged or denied that it has deployed Pegasus software, but University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab had identified India as the location for at least two NSO clients.”

The Guardian suggests that this “may provide a glimpse at the delicate relationship between Tibet’s exiles and the Indian government”, and that it “points to a growing awareness in Delhi, as well as in western capitals, of the strategic importance of Tibet as their relationships with China have grown more tense over the past five years”.

The Guardian speculates, “India could have several motives for possible spying on Tibetan leaders but some in Dharamshala have concluded the question of [the Dalai Lama’s] succession may be a driving force.”

China claims the sole right to control the selection process for future Dalai Lamas. The Guardian article reports that analysts say China is “already pressuring neighbours such as Nepal and Mongolia to rule out recognising any

successor but its own” and that “Beijing is also contacting influential Buddhist teachers and clerics around the world, including some based in India, inviting them to China to try to lay the groundwork for its choice and muddy support for any candidate chosen by the Dalai Lama’s followers”.

There are implications for Delhi’s own relationship with China. The issue of contact and negotiations between the exile Tibetan government and China appears to be something that India wishes to monitor. Two years ago the Dalai Lama revealed that when he planned to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping during Xi’s visit to India in 2014, India vetoed the meeting. Speaking anonymously to the Guardian, a “former staffer with the Tibetan administration” said, “India is very aware of [the Dalai Lama’s connections with the Chinese leadership] and they want to make sure that no deals are made without their knowing or involvement.”

India has responded that the “allegations regarding government surveillance on specific people has no concrete basis or truth associated with it whatsoever”, and Ashwini Vaishnaw, India’s Information Technology Minister said the claims about Indian surveillance were an “attempt to malign Indian democracy”.

The Guardian concludes, “Delhi officially backs negotiations on the status of Tibet, but a recent Indian thinktank report suggested the country’s intelligence agencies had not always been supportive of the Dalai Lama’s ‘middle way’.”

The NSO has said that a number appearing on the leaked list was “in no way indicative of whether it was selected for surveillance using Pegasus” and that the “numbers in the list are not related to NSO Group in any way”.

“Three Shifts” to Increased Control over Tibet

by Mary Trewartha

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) launched its “Three Shifts” educational and religious work campaign, ahead of its centenary anniversary on July 1. One of the campaign events was held in Tibet on June 17, attended by nearly 500 people, including leaders from around the county and schools’ representatives, and presided over by Xiaohe, the Deputy Mayor of Nyingtri City in Gongbu Gyada [Ch:Jiangda] County.

The “Three Shifts” campaign’s edicts are: 1) Political standards must be higher; 2) the Party spirit requirements must be stricter and 3) Organisational discipline must be stronger.

Implementation of this campaign is in line with the “new era”, launched by Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Communist Party Congress in 2017, and is regarded by the CCP as a stage in the process of change in society. Xiaohe’s speech at the event in Tibet in June is consistent with the

Contact magazine | July 2021| Page No 4

actions which have followed on from the Seventh Tibet Work Forum held in Beijing in August last year, presided over by Xi Jinping, and which demonstrate the Chinese leadership’s decision to continue its policy of absolute control and assimilation of Tibet. At the time, Chinese state media reported that Xi laid out a “strategy of governing Tibet in the new era” that includes “Sinicisation” of Tibetan Buddhism and improving the ability of the CCP “to deal with major struggles and prevent major risks”, as well as ensuring “national security” and “ethnic solidarity”. In propaganda meetings since then, these measures of marginalising Tibetan identity have often been interpreted in the Chinese state media as “the spirit” of the Seventh Tibet Work Forum.

In his closing speech, the Deputy Mayor stressed that Tibetan Buddhism must adapt to socialist society, give full respect to the role of CCP-appointed eminent monks, and take a clear-cut stand to eliminate the negative impact of the 14th Dalai Lama’s use of religion.

News Features China Ups their Systematic Suppression of the Tibetan Language Continued from page 1

based learning for Tibetan students in the region” said a spokesperson from Tibet Watch, an independent UK-based organisation which works to promote human rights for the Tibetan people through monitoring, advocacy and research.

Tibet Watch continued, saying that the official reason given for the closure is “the requirement for monks to study in the monasteries instead of schools”.

Sengdruk Taktse was first established as a primary school, later receiving a licence to become a middle school in 2008.

Tibet Watch reports that earlier this year, on January 20, “the Director of the Legal Affairs Committee of the National People’s Congress, Shen Chungyao, announced that schools in “minority areas” were no longer allowed to teach their own languages, declaring such education to be ‘unconstitutional’.

The statement was in clear contradiction to the founding provisions of the 1951 Bilingual Education law.”

A number of cases of arrests of intellectuals and scholars working on the survival of the Tibetan language, culture and identity adds weight to the widely-held conclusion that China is implementing a systematic strategy of eliminating Tibetan national identity. A source speaking to Radio Free Asia revealed that, since the end of 2020, many private Tibetan schools where Tibetan language and culture is taught have been shut down by the authorities in the Kardze

Tibet Autonomous region.

Suppression of the Tibetan language continues in other forms.

A new edict regarding exam results, issued earlier this month by the Ministry of Education in the Malho, Tsolho and Yulshul Tibetan areas of Amdo [Ch: Qinghai] province, declared that equal weight will be given to the scores of Tibetan language exams to those of English and Chinese for Tibetan students sitting for the 2021 New School Admission Entrance Exam. In previous years, the Tibetan language scores were weighted more highly against other subjects which affects overall exam results and the subsequent placing of students for middle and high schools.

“Many Tibetan students who wish to enrol in them are not able to make it, instead, they have to enrol in schools where more than 90 percent of the instruction is in Chinese,” said Karma Tenzin, a researcher at the Tibet Policy Institute in Dharamsala, speaking to RFA. A separate report from Human Rights Watch says that the Chinese language is now being used above the Tibetan language on signage in Tibet. Until recently Tibetan always appeared above Chinese on all public signboards, notices, and banners but this has been reversed, according to HRW whose experts have studied photos from Tibet. There has been no official announcement; there is a legal requirement in place for bilingual signage.

Boycott Beijing Olympics Jul 28: Complaint Filed Four Swiss-based Tibetan organisations have filed a complaint against the International Olympic Committee (IOC), saying they violated OECD Guidelines when they awarded China the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. OECD, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, is an international organisation that works with governments, policy makers and citizens to establish international standards to build policies that foster prosperity, equality, opportunity and well-being for all.

Jul 16: UK Votes for Boycott The United Kingdom government has voted to support a boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing in protest against the Chinese government’s human rights violations against Tibetans, Uyhgurs, Hongkongers and others. There was significant cross-party support for a boycott, with several MPs asking for a full sporting boycott. Campaigners are urging for a complete athletics, as well as a diplomatic, boycott.

Jul 9: EU Reaction The European Parliament has adopted a resolution calling on the European Union and its member states to boycott

the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics unless “the Chinese Government demonstrates a verifiable improvement in the human rights situation in Hong Kong, the Xinjiang Uyghur Region, Tibet, Inner Mongolia and elsewhere in China.” MPs said the EU should continue to raise the issue of human rights violations in East Turkestan [Ch: Xinjiang] and Tibet.

Jun 24: Day of Action A Global Day of Action calling for a boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics next year was led by Tibetan, Uyghur, Taiwanese, Hong Kong, South Mongolian and Chinese activists. Australia, Japan, several European countries and America participated in the live demonstrations, while many took action digitally. The day was held in protest at China’s human rights abuses. India’s focus of interest is China’s ongoing incursions across the Tibet-India border.

Jun 13: Call for Boycott The Senate of the Czech Republic joined many countries calling for a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics 2022 in the light of China’s gross human rights violations in East Turkestan (Xinjiang), Tibet and Hong Kong. They aim to pressure other countries’ leaders to join the boycott.

Contact magazine | July 2021| Page No 5

News Features International Spotlight on Xi’s Visit to Tibet Continued from page 1

plateau region […] Xi said over the past 70 years Tibet has made historic strides in the social system and realised full economic and social development, with people’s living standards significantly improved.” The report continued, “Xi stressed efforts to strengthen developing border areas” and mentioned “protecting the ecology of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau”. He visited Drepung Monastery, and spoke of the “contributions the monastery has made in upholding the leadership of the CPC, supporting the socialist system and safeguarding national unity”.

Xi visited Nyingchi, a Tibetan town close to the border with the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, which China claims as its own territory leading to ongoing border disputes; he travelled on the new Sichuan–Tibet Railway, designed to facilitate military presence near the border there. Xinhua reports him as speaking of “border-area consolidation” and that he “stressed efforts to strengthen developing border areas”. He is shown being accompanied by Zhang Youxia of China’s Central Military Commission and a senior general in the People’s Liberation Army.

Phayul reports Xi as saying to local Tibetans. “As long as we follow the Communist Party, as long as we adhere to the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, we will surely be able to achieve the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation [...] all ethnic groups all over Tibet were marching towards a happy life in the future. We are as full of confidence as you.”

China’s Globaltimes reports that his visit “showed the central government’s emphasis on boosting the economic growth and stability of TAR as well as improving local residents’ livelihoods”.

The visit has attracted the attention of the international media. Under the heading “First Chinese presidential visit to Tibet in 30 years” the BBC said, “China is accused of suppressing cultural and religious freedom in the remote and mainly Buddhist region. The government denies the accusations and says Tibet has developed considerably under its rule”. The Economist asks, “Why has China’s President Xi Jinping visited Tibet?” and says “The timing and initial silence about it in the Chinese press suggest unease about the legitimacy of Chinese rule there” and goes on to suggest unease extends to the “political stability in the region” while Reuters says “China’s Xi urges people in Tibet to ‘follow the party’”.

RFA quoted their sources in Lhasa as saying that, “residents’ movements in the city were restricted and factories closed, with construction work halted and Lhasa’s

Contact magazine | July 2021 | Page No 6

iconic Potala Palace […] closed for the day”. They also reported that the flying of kites and drones in Lhasa had already been banned. During his visit, videos circulating on social media show Xi touring the Barkor Old Town part of the city.

Sophie Richardson, Human Rights Watch China Director, speaking to RFA said that Xi Jinping’s visit to Tibet was “certainly a surprise […] But the reality is that the person who ought to be strolling freely around Lhasa and the Barkor is His Holiness the Dalai Lama”. Bhuchung Tsering, interim president of the Washington-based International Campaign for Tibet, said the visit “raises many questions”, adding, “It’s clear from the way President Xi Jinping’s visit has been kept secret that there is no stability in Tibet.”

RFA quotes London-based Tibet scholar Robbie Barnett as saying that the visit may have been intended to signal to India that Xi Jinping is prioritising the issue of tensions along India’s border with Tibet.

India’s interest in the visit focusses on their own relationship with China, The Hindu saying under the heading “Chinese President Xi Jinping visiting Tibet is a threat to India, says senior US Congressman”, that “Chinese President Xi Jinping visiting Tibet last week is a threat to India, an influential US lawmaker has said, accusing the Joe Biden-led administration of not doing enough to stop the Chinese ‘march’.”

The Hindu’s article continues on this theme, quoting Fox News, “Republican Congressman Devin Nunes spoke of ‘a Chinese dictator had been to Tibet, and also threatening India, over a billion people also a nuclear power; threatening India that he’s going to build a big water project, possibly cut off water to India’.”

The South China Morning Post, the most independent news media source in China, asks “What message was Xi Jinping trying to send on his visit to Tibet?”. The article suggests that the visit was “designed to send a message to the US, India and the Dalai Lama” and that “Visits to a leading Buddhist monastery may also have been a way to highlight Beijing’s grip on the region”. It continues, “Chinese President Xi Jinping’s recent visit to Tibet was a way for Beijing to flex its muscles and send a clear message about its dominance of the region, according to analysts”.

Meanwhile in McLeod Ganj, the Tibetan Women’s Association marked the occasion with a demonstration to coincide with Xi’s visit, to protest against the Chinese government’s atrocities against Tibetans and their celebration of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese Communist Party on July 1 of this year.

News Features New HRW Report Calls for Immediate Release of Four Monks

by Mary Trewartha Human Rights Watch has released a new report Prosecute Them with Awesome Power: China’s Crackdown on Tengdro Monastery and Restrictions on Communications in Tibet, which details the prosecution and prison sentences handed out to four monks, Choegyal Wangpo, Lobsang Jinpa, Norbu Dondrup and Ngawang Yeshe who received sentences of 20, 19, 17 and 5 years respectively following a raid on their monastery in Lhasa. The report says the sentences “reflect the increasing pressure on local officials to restrict online communications and punish peaceful expression as a security threat”.

The 61-page report gives details of the government’s crackdown on the little-known Tengdro monastery. In September 2019, police found private messages on a cellphone which had been lost by Choegyal Wangpo, including messages which had been exchanged with Tibetan monks in Nepal, and records of donations made after the 2015 Nepal earthquake. Despite the fact that sending messages abroad or making humanitarian donations does not violate Chinese law, the police responded with a raid on the monastery that resulted in multiple arrests, a suicide, and, in 2020, a secret trial of the four monks.

Sophie Richardson, China director at Human Rights Watch said, “The unprecedented sentences of the Tengdro monks reflect a ‘perfect storm’ in Tibet. The Chinese

government’s assumption that Tibetan monks and nuns are potential subversives, the heightened border security, and increased restrictions on online communications and religious donations all combined to create a shocking miscarriage of justice.”

HRW reports that since this raid, there have been several reports in the exile Tibetan media of meetings held by local officials in Tibet to threaten residents against contacting relatives outside Tibet. The authorities have also detained and beaten Tibetan netizens for posts deemed by the authorities to “endanger national security”. The Tengdro monks’ case demonstrates the arbitrary and extreme manner in which restrictions on online communications are being enforced throughout Tibetan areas.

HRW calls for the immediate release of the monks, and for concerned governments and the United Nations to pressure the Chinese government to respect Tibetans’ human rights.

Sophie Richardson continued, “The horrific treatment of the Tengdro monks points to the Chinese government’s pressure on officials in Tibet to find and punish cases of political subversion – even if the alleged subversion is a figment of their imagination.”

The story has hit the international press, with the UK Guardian reporting in their article “Tibet monks jailed with no apparent evidence of wrongdoing, says HRW”.

Oppression in Driru Intensifies

by Tenzin Samten Gyajin, 44, a Tibetan father of three, was arrested by Chinese police in April, along with other Tibetans, in Driru in the traditional province of Kham [Ch: Sichuan] on suspicion of contacting Tibetans in exile through social media or by phone. Neither the whereabouts of Gyajin, nor any details of other Tibetans arrested along with him, are known due to the communication restrictions currently in place in Driru.

A report by Tibet Watch, a UK-based organisation who’s core aim is to promote the human rights of the Tibetan people through monitoring, advocacy and research, said that Tibetans in Driru County continue to live under a “deepening state of fear” which prevents them from sharing information on social media or keeping in touch with Tibetans outside Tibet. Restrictions and surveillance in the county have surged since local Tibetans there staged a protest against Chinese affiliated companies carrying out extraction activities on their sacred mountain, Naglha Zamba in 2010 and 2013.

Driru has become “the most severely and militarily controlled” place in the Tibet Autonomous Region. In

addition to the strong military presence, there is a political re-education campaign and Tibetans in Driru are required to fly the Chinese flag from the roofs of their houses.Tibetans living in exile have no means to communicate with any family they have living in Driru, and people living there are reluctant to pass on information because of the fear of severe repercussions.

In August 2020, Lhamo, 36, a nomad and mother of three from Driru, died from injuries sustained during her detention; she had been arrested for sending money to her family in India, and also for keeping photos of His Holiness the Dalai Lama in her home. Her nephew, Tenzin Tharpa, was also detained for sending money to his family in exile.

Tibet Watch say in their report Driru County: The New Hub of Tibetan Resistance that Driru county is a rural place with a nomadic population and rich natural resources which China is exploiting with ongoing major mining and dam construction works. These activities are causing environmental deprivation and encroaching on traditional Buddhist sacred places.

Contact magazine | July 2021 | Page No 7

News Features New Code of Conduct for Tibet

by Mary Trewartha The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has issued a new six-point code of conduct in the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), the Code of Conduct for Communist Party Members in the Tibet Autonomous Region for Not Believing in Religion, which explicitly forbids party members from all forms of religiosity in both public and private life.

The International Campaign for Tibet* says the code of conduct, which is currently being trialled, is significant for being perhaps the first party regulation that clearly and comprehensively details the specific types of religiosity forbidden for party members in the TAR. Examples of explicitly forbidden conduct include wearing rosary beads or religious imagery, forwarding or liking religious materials online, and circumambulating mountains and lakes.

Party members are required to take an active role to propagate the party’s anti-religion stance by advising relatives to downplay their religious consciousness, not set up altars or hang religious imagery in homes, and to seek party approval before inviting religious personnel to conduct rituals for customary occasions such as weddings and funerals.

ICT believes that the code of conduct is specifically aimed at Tibetan members of the CCP. Chinese state media reports that study meetings are taking place in the TAR as part of the campaign to promote strict compliance to the code of conduct by party members. In addition, there are regulations which emphasise ideological conformity, discipline and political responsibility.

Although the code is said to apply throughout China, the code of conduct for the TAR appears to be unique, says ICT, as no equivalent code on religion is found for party members in other Chinese provinces and “autonomous” regions. East Turkestan [Ch: Xinjiang], with a Muslim majority, is the nearest comparable region to the Buddhist majority TAR; however, ICT has not found an equivalent code of conduct forbidding Islamic religiosity for party members in East Turkestan and suggests that this is a focus on Tibetan Buddhist religiosity to implement central party directives against religion and party building in the TAR. ICT has translated the code as follows: For Party members: • Not wearing beads and statues on your body • Not tattooing religious scriptures or signs on your body • Not placing religious signs on office premises or official vehicles • Not participating in group religious study and religious chanting

Contact magazine | July 2021 | Page No 8

• • • • • •

Not donating money and materials to monasteries Not going for religious ritual visits, pilgrimages Not receiving ordination, making religious offerings No religious or spiritual retreats No circumambulation of mountains and lakes Not inviting monks and nuns and performing divination for family members or performing prayers or providing names to children • No forwarding or liking religious audio, video, religious information or scriptures • Not sending children to monasteries as monks and nuns, not sending them to places of religious worship or schools run by religious believers • No to the 14th Dalai Lama The obligations of Tibetan party members toward family members and society are: • Guide religious family members and relatives to downplay their religious consciousness • Advise them not to set up altars, place religious objects or hang religious pictures or photos of religious personalities at home • Advise family members and relatives not to participate in religious activities or do so as little as possible • In case of customary activities (such as weddings and funerals) permission must be sought from the party branch before inviting religious personnel to carry out religious activities • Promptly stop family members and close relatives on trips abroad from having audience with the 14th Dalai Lama or participate in various religious ceremonies and activities organised by the 14th Dalai Lama and the “Dalai clique”. Report to the party if they could not be stopped • Instruct the religious public to treat religion consciously, change their customs and reduce the influence of religion Party leaders in the TAR demand strict compliance from Tibetan party members, who often face conflicts between their faith and party discipline. ICT says that Tibetans join the party for pragmatic reasons (such as for personal advancement), and to enable them to work within the regime to make a difference in the lives of their fellow Tibetans. They do not join out of a desire to overturn the Buddhist faith or erase Tibetan identity in their homeland. * The International Campaign for Tibet is a non-profit advocacy group working to promote democratic freedoms for Tibetans, ensure their human rights, and protect Tibetan culture and the environment.

News Features CCP Centenary – Footage from Tibet

by Tenzin Samten Video footage has emerged from Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, showing that Lhasa was flooded with Chinese people on the eve of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP )’s Centenary anniversary celebrations on July 1. A propaganda light show was projected onto the walls of the Potala Palace – the Potala is the home of the Dalai Lamas and His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama’s home before coming into exile and is regarded as the defining symbol of Tibet, as well as being the holiest symbol of Tibetan Buddhism and visited on pilgrimage by Tibetans from across Tibet.

The projection showed messages written in Chinese, which translated as “Celebrate the CCP’s 100th founding anniversary”, and posters were displayed on the Jokhang Temple in Barkhor Street nearby. The Jokhang Temple is considered to be the most sacred Buddhist temple in Tibet.

Tibet has been closed to the international media for decades.

Many Tibetans living inside Tibet have been arrested and faced prison sentences for sharing information, or even having contact with Tibetans in exile.

This video of the projection onto the Potala has been widely shared on social media; it was recorded by a woman who included a commentary, sounding very distressed, and saying that while Tibetans are not allowed to circumambulate around the Potala Palace and Jokhang temple, which is part of their daily prayer routine, these places are filled with Chinese tourists. High Peaks Pure Earth* translated the woman’s commentary, “Now look at what they’ve done on His Holiness’s Palace. The nerve, how did they even think of this? Look, it’s exactly the same as being in China. Damn Chinese… Chinese people everywhere.”

Exiled Tibetans worry about the safety of the woman who shared this video.

A newly arrived Tibetan from Lhasa, who is currently staying in Dharamshala, commentated, “the woman must be already arrested by the Chinese police. After sharing information like this on social media it is impossible to escape from the authorities. To record and say such things are out of desperation and anger, it is a common feeling among Tibetans living there. When something like this happens, it is sure that the person has made their mind about their arrest and safety. They know what will happen to them.”

The Tibetan continued, saying that these arbitrary arrests and detentions of Tibetans have been common over the last few years; that people are taken at night, and that no one knows where they are taken.

“In the absence of foreign media and press freedom in Tibet, Tibetans inside Tibet put their lives at great risk and send such footage to the world. In this rare video, we hear the deepest pain of a Tibetan woman in Lhasa as the CCP projects its glorified history on the walls of the Potala,” said Tenzin Choekyi, a researcher at Tibet Watch*.

While China celebrates CCP’s 100th anniversary with much pomp and show, the Chinese embassy in New Delhi, India was stormed by members of the Tibetan Youth Congress and other activists in protest against the continued repression of Tibet by China. *High Peaks Pure Earth: Provides translations and Commentary from Tibetan Social Media *Tibet Watch: Research partner of Free Tibet – a London-based organisation established to support the Tibetan people’s struggle for freedom

World Leaders Declare Support for Tibet

by Mary Trewartha The United Nations has released a statement by a group of experts who say they are “extremely alarmed by reports of alleged ‘organ harvesting’ which is targeting minorities, including Falun Gong practitioners, Uyghurs, Tibetans, Muslims and Christians, in detention in China”. Falun Gong is a Buddhist religion banned in China, and Uyghurs are the ethnic minority Muslim people living in East Turkestan [Ch: Xinjiang] in north western China who are subjected to similar oppressive rule as that of the Tibetans living in Tibet.

The UN statement, released on June 14, continues, “The experts said they have received credible information that detainees from ethnic, linguistic or religious minorities may be forcibly subjected to blood tests and organ examinations such as ultrasound and x-rays, without their informed consent; while other prisoners are not required to undergo such examinations. The results of the examinations are reportedly registered in a database of living organ sources that facilitates organ allocation.

“Forced organ harvesting in China appears to be targeting specific ethnic, linguistic or religious minorities held in detention,” they said.

The report continues, “information continues to emerge regarding serious human rights violations in the procurement of organs for transplants in China” and speaks of a “lack of independent oversight as to whether the consent to donation and organ allocation is effectively given by prisoners or detainees”.

The following day the United States and European Union issued a joint declaration which mentions their shared concerns about “ongoing human rights violations in Xinjiang and Tibet, the erosion of autonomy and democratic processes in Hong Kong; economic coercion; disinformation campaigns and regional security issues” and promises that Brussels and Washington will “closely consult and cooperate”.

In December last year, the “New EU-US agenda for global change” was adopted with the EU and the US agreeing on the strategic challenge presented by China’s growing international assertiveness.

Contact magazine | July 2021 | Page No 9

News Features Birthday Wishes from Around the World for His Holiness

by Tenzin Samten His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the spiritual head of the Tibetan people, turned 86 on July 6; celebrations were kept low key in small groups due to the Covid19 pandemic. The Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), also known as the Tibetan Government-in-Exile, held the official ceremony at a small gathering. Birthday greetings from Tibetans, followers and friends of His Holiness from across the world were widely shared across social media platforms.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama addressed the public virtually on his birthday, calling for his friends to keep committed to “compassion and non-violence” throughout the rest of their life, which His Holiness considers as a birthday gift, adding that he is committed to non-violence and compassion until his death.

Reiterating his commitment to serve humanity His Holiness said, “I want to express my deep appreciation to all my friends who have really shown me love, respect and trust. For myself, I can assure you that for the rest of my life I am committed to serving humanity and working to protect the climate condition.

“Since I became a refugee and now settled in India, I have taken full advantage of India’s freedom and religious harmony. I want to assure you that for the rest of my life I am committed to reviving ancient Indian knowledge. I really appreciate the Indian concept of secular values, not dependent on religion, such as honesty, karuna (compassion) and ahimsa (non-violence).”

Penpa Tsering, the newly elected Sikyong (President) of the CTA, in his address during the official celebration said that compared with the early days of exile, Tibetans are now relatively self-sufficient and this is the result of 60 years of hard work by His Holiness, the CTA and international aid groups.

“His Holiness the Dalai Lama is one of the foremost guides of our time and is one of the few individuals who can reorient Sino–Tibetan history toward a positive direction.

The Chinese government should therefore recognise that His Holiness the Dalai Lama is the key to resolving the Sino-Tibetan conflict,” said Penpa.

He also earnestly appealed to the Chinese government to invite His Holiness to Tibet and China on pilgrimage without preconditions. His Holiness has expressed his willingness to visit these places on many occasions.

Dignitaries from various countries sent birthday wishes to His Holiness.

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi called His Holiness on his birthday to wish him a long and healthy life, he made this message public by tweeting,” Spoke on phone to His Holiness the Dalai Lama to convey greetings on his 86th birthday. We wish him a long and healthy life.” This is possibly Modi’s first public greeting to His Holiness since

Contact magazine | July 2021 | Page No 10

his election as Prime Minister; it is assumed he has not done this before to avoid friction with China.

Arvind Kejriwal, the Chief Minister of Delhi, extended his greetings to His Holiness saying, “on behalf of all my fellow Indians, wishing His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama on his 86th birthday. We consider ourselves fortunate to be inculcating your values in our Delhi government school students through the medium of [the] Happiness Curriculum”.

Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen also sent good wishes to His Holiness, saying in a Twitter post, “Wishing a very happy 86th birthday to His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Thank you for teaching us the importance of coming together to help one another through this pandemic.”

United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi extended their birthday greetings to His Holiness the Dalai Lama on their official Twitter pages. Antony Blinken tweeted, “Delighted to extend His Holiness the Dalai Lama warm wishes on his birthday.

He inspires us all to live each day with humility, compassion, and understanding. Here’s to many more years.”

“It is an honour to join the Tibetan people and so many friends of Tibet to send warm birthday wishes to His Holiness the Dalai Lama,” tweeted Speaker Nancy Pelosi, “This is a beautiful opportunity to celebrate His Holiness and the message of hope and spiritual guidance that he has shared with the world.”

The US Ambassador in India, Atul Keshap, also sent his birthday wish to His Holiness saying, “[the] Dalai Lama’s messages of peace and compassion inspire and transcend globally”.

Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi, MP, Founder and President Emeritus of the Inkatha Freedom Party in South Africa, has issued a statement on His Holiness’s birthday expressing his good wishes, “His commitment to peace, non-violence and human solidarity have always resonated with me, for these are the very principles on which I founded Inkatha and by which I have lived for nine decades,” he said in the statement.

Many other politicians and renowned individuals from different walks of life from across the world have offered their best wishes to His Holiness.

Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama has been living in India since 1959 after coming into exile from Tibet. In previous years, pre-Covid, His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s birthday has been one of the grandest celebrations in the Tibetan community. It is normally also one of the biggest events in Dharamshala where many international dignitaries and representatives from the Tibetan Government-in-Exile and the Himachal Government, as well as the Government of India, visit Dharamshala to take part in the celebrations.

News Features Nepal Prevaricates

by Mary Trewartha The Nepali government has failed to commit to respecting and protecting the rights of Tibetan refugees living in the country during the United Nations (UN) Universal Periodic Review (UPR). UN member states gave recommendations regarding Tibetan refugees on January 21 this year as part of Nepal’s third UPR cycle. However, the Nepali government “noted” – but did not “accept” – some of the recommendations. The UPR report of Nepal was adopted on July 8, during the 47th session of the UN Human Rights Council.

The Nepali government did not accept a key recommendation calling for the registration and verification of all Tibetan refugees, followed by the issuance of identity documents. Lack of documentation means Tibetan refugees in Nepal face a lack of access to education, legal and work opportunities, as well as medical and other government services, and leaves them vulnerable to crime and human rights violations with no recourse before the law.

The government did not support another recommendation calling for efforts to be stepped up in the fight against segregation and discrimination of ethnic minorities, including Tibetans. Two other recommendations not accepted called for the respect of the principle of non-refoulement: the government claimed it was abiding by this fundamental principle that stipulates no one should be returned to a country where they would face persecution or danger, however the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) says there is evidence that Nepal is not adhering to this principle.

Neither did the government accept the three recommendations calling for the ratification of the 1951 Refugee Convention, and one recommendation that called for the adoption of national legislation in accordance with international standards on the protection of refugees.

FIDH Secretary-General Adilur Rahman Khan said, “Nepal should be praised for hosting thousands of Tibetan refugees for decades, but this is not enough. Sheltering refugees must also mean giving them full protection in accordance with relevant international human rights principles and treaties. The Nepali government must take urgent steps to grant legal status to Tibetans and ensure their fundamental rights are respected and protected”.

The Nepali government did accept many recommendations that, if adequately and effectively implemented, could address some of the human rights challenges that Tibetans face in Nepal. These include recommendations to ensure the rights to freedom of expression and freedom of peaceful assembly; protect the rights of vulnerable groups, including ethnic minorities and protect the rights of persons belonging to religious minorities.

Tibetans in Nepal publicly expressing opinions about the human rights situation in Tibet, or displaying Tibetan national symbols, or being involved in political activism have been subjected to arrests and harassment. They also face restrictions on religious and political celebrations and Nepali authorities have continued to impose bans on their public gatherings.

US Technology Bill Increases Supports for Tibetans

by Tenzin Samten The United States’ Senate passed a bipartisan bill on June 8 which reiterated the US government’s continued and long tradition of strong and bipartisan support for the Tibetan people.

The Technology Bill aims to boost US ability to compete with China’s, and other countries’, technological advancement.

The US Innovation and Competition Act allocates an investment of US$250 billion to technological science and research to tackle the threat posed by China in terms of economic and political competition.

The bill establishes new US policy on Tibet, which includes the appointment of a Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues, of the rank of undersecretary or above – recently this post has been allocated to a lower level official.

The bill also opposes China’s determination to control His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s succession saying, “interference by the Government of the People’s Republic of China or any other government in the process of recognising a successor or reincarnation of the 14th Dalai Lama and any future Dalai

Lamas would represent a clear abuse of the right to religious freedom of Tibetan Buddhists and the Tibetan people”, and warns of sanctions.

The new bill provides for the setting up of a Tibet Unit within the Political Section of the US Embassy in Beijing and mandates, “The Secretary shall assign not fewer than two United States direct-hire personnel to the Tibet Unit and hire not fewer than one locally engaged member for such unit”.

The bill calls for additional sanctions related to China’s genocide of the Muslim ethnic minority Uyghur population of East Turkestan [Ch: Xinjiang] in north western China, and bans US officials from attending the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.

In response, Republic World quotes Wang Wenbin, a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, saying the US bill “advocates strategic competition” and “smears China’s development path and both domestic and foreign policies”.

It also alleges that the bill seriously interferes in the China’s internal affairs.

Contact magazine | July 2021 | Page No 11

Tibetan Headlines Jul 30: Nobel Laureats’ Outrage More than 100 Nobel laureats have denounced China for trying repeatedly to persuade the National Academic Sciences (NAS) to remove His Holiness the Dalai Lama and another Nobel Laureat from the list of speakers at their summit last April.

The NAS has condemned China for their “harassment, and have warned the Embassy against this inappropriate conduct.”

Chinese state media headlines read, “US poisons international science by inviting secessionists at conference”.

Jul 21: Protest in Japan A protest took place outside the Chinese Embassy in Tokyo, with about 30 people including Tibetans, Uyghurs and Mongolians, as well as human rights activists, demonstrating against Beijing’s human rights violations. They called on the international community to boycott the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games, and to intervene on behalf of ethnic minorities in China, and the political and civil rights of Hong Kong residents.

Jul 30: Foot and Mouth Outbreak An outbreak of the fatal foot and mouth disease which affects cattle and sheep is devastating Tibetan nomads living in Duchik in Ladakh in the far north of India. Over 1,000 sheep belonging to eight Tibetan families and one Ladakhi family have died, many cattle are affected and many more animals are sick, reports Phayul.

Jul 20: Prayers The Maha Guru Bumtsok prayer ceremony took place at Tsuglakhang Temple in McLeod Ganj, attended by Sikyong Penpa Tsering, President of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA). The annual ceremony, which was scaled down this year in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic, involves the large-scale distribution of food to devotees. It is organised by the CTA. Lopon Lobsang Tendar of Namgyal Monastery presided.

Jul 28: US Speaks Out United States Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, visiting China July 25 – 26, raised concerns about China’s human rights violations in Tibet, East Turkestan and Hong Kong when she met China’s State Councillor and Foreign minister Wang Yi and other senior Chinese government officials. She spoke about a range of issues running “counter to our values”.

Jul 27: Free Tibet!

Japanese clothing brand Kapital incurred the wrath of China with its new Free Tibet collection, with jackets, shirts and socks sporting FREE TIBET slogans and pictures of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. A storm of social media protests from Chinese netizens ensued. Japan’s relations with China are tense over Japan’s perceived defence of Taiwan as an independent country, and their backing of Australia over their trade war with China.

Jul 26: His Holiness’s Support His Holiness the Dalai Lama is making a donation from his Trust fund to support the people affected by the monsoon floods in the west Indian state of Maharashtra. Offering his prayers and condolences, he wrote, “As a gesture of our solidarity with the people of Maharashtra, I have asked the Dalai Lama Trust to make a donation towards relief and rescue efforts.”

Jul 22: Relentless Sinicisation Chinese state media reports that Beijing’s policy of the sinicisation of Tibet has been reaffirmed. Chinese Communist Party executive committee members, who met in Lhasa last month, called for “political education” to further weaken Tibetans’ loyalty to HH the Dalai Lama. They reiterated declarations made by Chinese president Xi Jinping last year that Tibetan Buddhism should adapt to socialist society and be “developed in a Chinese context”.

Contact magazine | July 2021 | Page No 12

Jul 19: His Holiness Offers Condolences His Holiness the Dalai Lama has written to German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo offering his condolences and sympathy to everyone affected by the flooding in Europe. “I am saddened to see reports of the unprecedented flooding that has wreaked havoc across western Europe [...] The loss of life, damage to property, and hardship that thousands of people are facing is most upsetting.”

Jul 17: Justice Day The five major Tibetan non-government organisations in Dharamshala launched a campaign calling on international governments and world leaders to hold China accountable for depriving Tibetans, Uyghurs, Southern Mongolians, Hongkongers, Taiwanese and Chinese democratic activists of justice. The launch marked International Criminal Justice Day, held on the anniversary of the International Criminal Court’s founding treaty, the Rome Statute.

Jul 13: Furore Unresolved A further protest has taken place at Gangchen Kyishong, the seat of the Tibetan Government-in-Exile in Dharamshala, calling on the three Justice Commissioners who were sacked earlier this year, and then reinstated, to “respect democracy and resign now”. The furore has been ongoing since the impeachment.

Jul 13: Another Chinese Incursion A party of Chinese nationals crossed the Tibet-India border into India in eastern Ladakh to protest against Ladakhi villagers who were celebrating His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s birthday, reports The Hindu. The Chinese - both army personnel and civilians – arrived in five vehicles and displayed the Chinese flag and banners, staying for around half an hour.

Tibetan Headlines Jul 12: Global Award for SFT Students for a Free Tibet are the joint winners of the World Movement for Democracy’s Tenth Democracy Courage Tribute, along with Hong Kong Watch and Campaign for Uyghurs. The award citation says “it honours the activists bravely working to build solidarity and resilience against China’s authoritarian measures” and continued, saying the three groups “epitomise the courage that democracy activists take in the face of repression”.

Jul 5: Tibet: Independence?

United States House Representative Scott Perry reintroduced a bill for Tibet on the Chinese Communist Party centenary, tweeting, “I’m proud to introduce a resolution calling on President Biden to declare Tibet an independent country.”

The bill states, “It would benefit the national security of the US to recognise Tibet [...] as a separate, independent country”, and asks for sanctions against people who have supported the “illegal occupation” of Tibet.

Jul 9: His Holiness to Meet Modi India Today has published an article suggesting that His Holiness the Dalai Lama will meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi once the Covid-19 situation stabilises.

The article quoted Sikyong Penpa Tsering, President of the Tibetan Government-in-Exile, who also said that His Holiness hopes to visit Tibet, and that he “has expressed his desire to visit his birthplace, Tibet, on many occasions”.

Jun 29: Border Tensions India is moving at least 50,000 troops to the border with Tibet, apparently in readiness for potential conflict with China who regularly makes incursions into India. Until now India has used its military as a purely defensive strategy, there is press speculation that this latest move is an offensive posture.

Jul 9: Shri Virbhadra Singh Shri Virbhadra Singh, the former Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, has died; HH the Dalai Lama has written to his widow, Smt Pratibha Singh, saying he will be “sorely missed” His Holiness continued, “I admired the way he listened to people’s needs with deep affection and compassion [...] Historically there have long been close ties between the people of [...] Bushahr, to which ‘Raja Sahib’ belonged, and their neighbours in western Tibet.”

Jun 29: Environment Conference The third Tibet Environment Conference, held in Dharamshala to highlight the global ecological importance of the Tibetan Plateau and the current environmental situation in Tibet, has concluded. International experts discussed strategies for safeguarding Tibet’s environment and looked at the implications for human rights in environmental conservation. The Conference is organised by the Tibet Policy Institute, a branch of the Central Tibetan Administration.

Jul 8: Tibetan Restaurant Awarded Taste Tibet, a family-owned Tibetan restaurant near Oxford in the United Kingdom, has been nominated for this year’s BBC Food and Farming Award in the Best Street Food or Takeaway Category – a top national award. Yeshi Jampa and Julie Kleeman opened as a street food venue in 2014 and then opened a restaurant last winter. Their nomination comes from all they have done to help others during the lockdowns.

Jun 28: Ahead of Schedule The latest link in China’s new high-speed railway line in Tibet, linking Lhasa with Nyingtri [Ch:Nyingchi] on the Tibet–India border, opened on June 25. The 435 km track, which reaches a record 5,100 metres above sea level, has a design speed of 160 km per hour. Chinese President Xi Jinping has said it would play a key role in safeguarding border stability.

Jul 6: Arrested!

Rajeev Sharma, 61, a freelance journalist who was paid

by China to write fake and detrimental reports about HH the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan Government-in-Exile in 2018, has been rearrested. Sharma was jailed in Delhi under the country’s Official Secrets Act for passing sensitive information to Chinese intelligence.

Jun 23: Support at the UNHRC Forty four Countries, led by Canada, have issued a joint statement at the ongoing 47th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council expressing grave concerns over the human rights violations in Tibet, East Turkestan [Ch: Xinjiang] and Hong Kong. They called on China to abide by its human rights obligations and to allow United Nations access to East Turkestan.

Jul 5: Tibet Heritage Month July is Tibet Heritage Month in Ontario, Canada. This new project, which became law last year, was championed by Bhutila Karpoche, the first Tibetan to be elected to public office in North America. It is a world first, and will be celebrated by promoting Tibetan identity and cultural heritage. It takes place in July in recognition of His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s birthday.

Jun 22: Protestors Win Through!

China’s ambassador to Denmark, Mr Feng Tie, was mobbed by protestors carrying the Tibetan flag as he emerged from a media interview on June 18. Protestors shouted slogans including “Free Tibet”, “Free Hong Kong”, and “Free China”. Protestors are usually prevented from engaging with Chinese officials in the West.

Contact magazine | July 2021 | Page No 13

People story Dhargye’s Story: Singing for the Love of It

by Ben Byrne Thousands of people are gathered at an outdoor arena on the Tibetan plateau. School children sit waving Chinese flags. Tibetan prayer flags billow in a soft breeze. Among a throng of elated Tibetans stands a stony-faced Chinese police officer. On stage, entertaining them all, is Sherten, the famous Tibetan singer from Amdo. Sherten is dressed in his traditional Tibetan chuba and riding boots, numerous khatas are draped around his neck as he sings “Nyamdu Zom” (Come Together). What nobody in the audience knows is that the lyrics Sherten is singing were written by Sogshod Dhargye, a Tibetan exile living in India.

Dhargye has been performing songs since his childhood days in Tibet. He was part of his school dance team and regularly sang and danced on stage. In 2001, he fled from Tibet into exile in India. He had no plans to become a performer when he arrived. He only wanted to meet His Holiness the Dalai Lama and he walked for 18 days over the Himalayas to realise this dream. After meeting His Holiness, Dhargye “felt a deep satisfaction”; he then proceeded to make a life for himself in India.

Building a career as a performer is notoriously difficult for Tibetans in exile. There is a relatively tiny market for their work and it is difficult to get anything off the ground.

This is the reality which Dhargye first encountered when he embarked on his music career in 2007. Performers are hired for shows at the various Tibetan settlements throughout India and they negotiate a price for their services with the organisers of events. Over the years Dhargye has performed at settlements from Ladakh in the north to Bylakuppe in the south of India. These performances usually come on big stages with Dhargye singing over a karaoke-style backing track.

“It’s a group of like-minded people travelling and performing together,” Dhargye says of the Tibetan exile performance circuit, “Some settlements show a lot of support for the artists, others don’t.” Dhargye picks out the Ladakh, Bylakuppe and Mundgod settlements as the places with the best crowds. So far as the money goes, Dhargye says that the performers are lucky if they have their travel and living expenses covered.

In 2017, Dhargye made a concerted effort to break into a bigger market. He cut eight songs and sent them on a CD to a friend he met through social media forums in Chengdu [a city in the Kham region of Tibet, incorporated into Sichuan by China]. This friend pressed 2,000 copies and sent them for distribution across the Tibetan plateau.

1,000 copies were sent to Lhasa and 50 from this batch

Contact magazine | July 2021| Page No 14

were sent onwards to Ngari in the far west of Tibet. The other 1,000 copies were distributed in the Kham and Amdo [Ch: Qinghai] regions. Unfortunately, Dhargye’s effort to spread his music through his homeland hit a snag: “The police in Ngari came to know that the CDs were made by a singer in exile,” he explains, “They have a list of the names of all the people who have escaped.

There was nothing inflammatory in my lyrics. It’s just because I am from the so-called ‘separatist community’.

That’s why they banned my CD. My friend in Ngari who was helping me was banned from travelling outside of Ngari for a certain time.” Dhargye’s CDs met the same fate in Lhasa.

From his batch of 2,000 CDs, about a thousand were taken by the Chinese authorities. Only 100 copies were eventually sold, all in Kham or Amdo, where restrictions are less severe.

Dhargye was hoping to get his songs heard by a few people and simply make back the cost of distribution, but that wasn’t to be. “I’d need to sell about 20,000 CDs to make a decent profit,” he says, “but I’m usually happy if I can recover my initial costs.” In this instance Dhargye’s efforts were scuppered by the Chinese censors, but he still got a few songs in circulation, some of which have been picked up and performed by Tibetan singers like Sherten.

Among singers in exile, Dhargye’s songs have been performed by Gyang Dolma and Tenzin Kunsel.

A spiritual he wrote was also performed by Tsering Gurmey at the Kalachakra initiation ceremony in Ladakh. Perhaps his most famous song is “Tibetan Girl”, which has been sung at the Tibetan Children’s Village and also picked up by singers in Tibet. Dhargye thinks, however, that there should be more opportunities for Tibetan singers to perform in exile; events akin to those on the plateau at which Sherten performs: “It would be nice if there was an environment in Dharamshala where people could perform. In Tibet there are places called Nangma where singers are hired every day and their job is singing for customers. There is nothing like that here. I spoke to a former politician in the CTA (Central Tibetan Administration, the Tibetan Government-in-Exile) a few years ago who thought it would be good idea if we had something like that in the exile community, but nothing ever came about. It’s almost impossible to make a living as a singer in exile,” he continues, “but artists want to follow their passion for as long they can, even if they can’t make money. As for me, I just earn pocket money from my lyrics and tunes.”

Tibet-Related Websites News:

tibet.net - official website of the Central Tibetan Administration in exile phayul.com -Phayul is published in Dharamshala, has opinion, reviews, photos, etc contactmagazine.net - Contact magazine online news rfa.org/english/news/tibet - Radio Free Asia’s mission is to provide accurate and timely news and information to Asian countries whose governments prohibit access to a free press thetibetpost.com - Tibet Post International online news tibetexpress.net - Tibet Express online news guardian.co.uk/world/tibet - the UK Guardian newspaper’s Tibet pages scmp.com/news/china - the South China Morning Post – one of the more independent news sources in China tibetanreview.net - Tibetan Review online news

News, information and campaigning:

dalailama.com - for broadcasts of His Holiness’s teachings, his schedule and information about Tibet and the Dalai Lama tchrd.org - Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy - a non-governmental organisation and a research centre to protect the human rights of Tibetan people and promote the principles of democracy tibetanyouthcongress.org - an international non-governmental organisation that advocates full independence for Tibet from China studentsforafreetibet.org - a global grassroots group campaigning for full Tibetan independence freetibet.org: - UK-based campaigning organisation, also a good news source tibetwatch.org - Tibet Watch works with Free Tibet to promote the human rights of the Tibetan people through monitoring, research and advocacy. savetibet.org - Website of the International Campaign for Tibet and a good resource for news, campaigns, fundraising and projects tibetnetwork.org/home - a coalition of more than 190 Tibet organisations dedicated to campaigning to end human rights violations in Tibet and restoring rights to the Tibetan people tibetanjournal.com - Tibetan Journal - news, reviews and opinions rukor.org - a discussion site on Tibetan nomads and their fate bitterwinter.org - A magazine on religious liberty and human rights in China

Writings:

highpeakspureearth.com/category/woeser - occasional translations of Woeser’s enormously popular blog – Woeser lives in Beijing and is continually harassed by the Chinese government for her courageous writings.

Contact is published by Lha Charitable Trust Institute for Social Work and Education We have moved! (see map on next page)

Lha Charitable Trust

Lha’s Language Classes

Contact magazine | July 2021 | Page No 15

map of mcleod ganj, dharamshala

4

5

3

6

8

1

2

7

9

10 01.

02.

03.

04.

05.

06.

07.

McLeod Ganj Main Square State Bank of India & ATM Tibetan Welfare & Security Office Delek Hospital McLeod Branch Mentsekhang McLeod Branch Taxi Stand Post Office

08.

09.

10.

11.

12.

13.

11

Gaden Choeling Nunnery Lha Office (new location) Main Temple & Tibetan Musuem Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) Tibetan Library Gangkyi Taxi Stand

13

DHARAMSHALA CONTACTS Delek Hospital Gangkyi, Central Tibetan Administration Hours: Outpatient services: 9am-1pm, Mon-Sat Specialist clinics: 2-4:30pm Emergencies: 24-hrs, daily Phone: 222 053,223 381

Mcleod Ganj Police Station: 01892 221 483 Kangra Airport: 01892 232374 Bhagsu Taxi Union: 01892 221034 Tourism Office: 01892 224430 223325 Rail Booking & Enquiry: 01892 265026 Police Superintendent: 01892 222244

McLeod Ganj Post Office Location: Jogiwara Rd Before the Peace Cafe Hours: 9:30am-1pm and 2-5pm Mon-Fri; 9:30am-noon, Sat Parcels and money orders can be sent in the mornings only Phone: 01892-221 924

Follow Contact on website, Facebook and Instagram, using QR scan codes below

www.contactmagazine.net

Contact News

Contact Magazine

12