Tsering Dhundup
DHARAMSHALA, Sept. 8: A group of 13 UN human rights experts have voiced concerns in a UN communication to the Chinese government about the construction of the Kamtok hydroelectric dam on Tibet’s Drichu River, warning of “dire and irreversible environmental and climate impacts” and the potential for “irreversible destruction of important cultural and religious sites”.
The proposed dam, part of China’s broader hydropower development strategy, has faced strong opposition from local Tibetan communities since 2012. Experts estimate that the construction of the dam would displace at least 4,000 Tibetans and submerge two villages along with six monasteries, some housing 500-year-old Buddhist murals.
In February, large-scale protests against the dam in eastern Tibet were forcibly dispersed by police, resulting in hundreds of arrests. The UN experts criticized the “widespread crackdown” on peaceful protesters, citing arbitrary arrests and detentions. Tibetans in Dege and Jomda counties have long opposed the dam, with concerns over community displacement, cultural heritage destruction, and severe environmental damage.
The experts’ communication to China, made public on Friday, highlighted concerns over forced displacement, environmental degradation, and threats to biodiversity. They also noted the project’s potential to exacerbate climate change and increase the risk of natural disasters. The communication letter demands clarification from the Chinese government on the numerous reports of arrests and repression inflicted by Chinese government officials on local Tibetan protesters. It also requests details on how transparency, consultation, and respect for human rights will be ensured.
The Kamtok dam is being developed by a subsidiary of the state-owned China Huadian Corporation Ltd. Critics argue the project violates Tibetans’ rights to self-determination, cultural practices, and a clean environment. The Chinese government has not responded to the UN experts’ communication, which was initially sent with a request for a response within 60 days on July 8. The UN experts also send a letter regarding the implications of the dam’s construction to the Huadian Corporation Ltd.
Kai Müller, Head of the UN Advocacy Team at the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT) said, “This communication by 13 UN special procedures is a methodical examination of the Chinese government’s violent response to Tibetan protests against the Kamtok dam in Derge, as well as China’s so-called ‘sustainable renewable energy’ plan. In their letter, the UN human rights experts shine a bright light on the consequences of the Chinese government’s false claims about its development policy in Tibet. While Beijing pitches it as a climate-friendly and sustainable energy policy with hydropower dams as a key pillar, the reality is a ruthless strategy to exploit an oppressed country and marginalized people.
Müller continued, “The international community, governments, parliaments and civil society must not fall for China’s propaganda claiming that dam projects are clean and equitable “renewable” energy sources. Tibetans who are directly affected by environmental changes need to be consulted. Above all, Chinese development schemes in Tibet must be vigorously investigated and Tibet’s status as an unresolved political conflict must be honestly and seriously addressed.”
The Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC) has also welcomed the letter from the UN human rights experts and urged “respective governments to make strong representations against this construction, in favour of the fundamental rights of Tibetans.”
