Tsering Dhundup
DHARAMSHALA, Jan. 3: Chinese authorities have implemented stringent new restrictions banning private Tibetan-language lessons and forbidding participation in religious activities, for Tibetan students during their winter school break. According to Radio Free Asia (RFA), these measures, which came into effect on December 30, are being enforced across three provinces of Tibet.
Sources familiar with the situation, speaking on condition of anonymity for safety reasons, revealed that children are being prohibited from receiving Tibetan-language tutoring or engaging in educational activities outside the state-approved curriculum. Instead, authorities are mandating that students focus exclusively on improving their Mandarin-language proficiency and studying political topics, including Chinese President Xi Jinping’s ideology.
In Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, and other Tibetan regions, restrictions reflect Beijing’s broader strategy to suppress Tibetan language and culture, seeking to assimilate them into Han Chinese culture by prioritising Mandarin. In Golog, students and parents are reportedly being mandated to complete joint assignments emphasising Mandarin language proficiency and Chinese political indoctrination.
According to the report, in Dzoge and Ngaba counties in Kham province, authorities have gone further, banning children from wearing religious symbols or participating in any religious activities during the break. Parents are also forbidden from taking their children to monasteries. To ensure compliance, officials are conducting door-to-door inspections in residential areas and commercial establishments. Notices have been issued mandating strict surveillance of students and prohibiting their participation in online groups or community activities, sources said.
This crackdown is a continuation of policies implemented in recent years to systematically erode Tibetan language. In 2021, authorities banned informal Tibetan-language classes during school holidays, and enforcement has intensified since late 2023.
The Chinese government recently banned Tibetan language posts on Douyin, China’s version of TikTok, extending its cultural suppression efforts into the digital sphere. Tibetans voiced concerns over the ban. In a video, a Tibetan woman is seen lamenting the removal of Tibetan language posts on TikTok in China. “I am a native Tibetan speaker and cannot speak perfect Chinese. Why am I not allowed to post in my native language?” she questioned.
In Sep. 2024, the Education Bureau of the so-called Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Kham province issued a directive explicitly prohibiting Tibetan language instruction from primary to high secondary schools.
Ngaba County, a flashpoint for Tibetan resistance, has previously seen protests against the marginalisation of the Tibetan language. In 2021, a teenage student, Sherab Dorjee, submitted a formal appeal to education authorities requesting the reinstatement of Tibetan-language classes in his school.
Rights groups and Tibetan activists say that these measures are part of Beijing’s systematic efforts to undermine Tibetan identity and consolidate control over Tibet. By prioritising Mandarin and restricting cultural practices, the Chinese government seeks to erode the unique heritage of Tibet and integrate it more deeply into the broader framework of Chinese nationalism.
This is the most shocking evidence that communist China is absolutely erasing Tibetan language, Tibet’s historical and Tibetan Buddhism in its effort to occupy Tibet forever and legitimise its occupation by transforming Tibetans into Chinese! There is no excuse whatsoever to ban Tibetan children from studying their own father tongue. The right to learn ones own language is a human right enshrined in the Universal Human Rights Declaration! Tibetans are entitled to learn their own language! Tibetans are not Chinese and are different in every aspect from the Chinese; be it language, religion, traditions, customs and way of life! The Chinese constitution is supposed to “protect the rights of all 56 nationalities”! So, what happened to that constitutional right that is said to be enshrined in the Chinese communist constitution? It clearly demonstrates that the Chinese communist constitution is as worthless as a toilet paper! If the CCP regime doesn’t respect its own constitution, what else will it respect? The Chinese communist entity is based in racial preferential treatment of one people against all others. It is a racist state like Israel! It favours the Han Chinese as the ruling class with all the rights, power and clout to do anything as they please while the rest are completely at the mercy of the dominant Han Chinese! It’s exactly like apartheid Israel which favours the rights of the Jews over the Palestinian people and treat them like they are subhumans. The Chinese communists have been treating the Tibetan as subhumans from day one of their occupation! After sixty five years of occupation, Tibet is still under military occupation. The evil communist cult is now hellbent to destroy Tibet’s rich culture, language, religion and heritage in order to obliterate Tibet for good! It is clearly committing genocide in Tibet! It is destroying Tibet’s unique language that contains the most precious Buddhist cannons that is the treasure of the whole world! If Tibetan language is lost, the Buddha’s words in the form of Kangyur containing one hundred volumes will become intelligible and lost forever to the world. The evil and violent communist cult is wedded to violence and murder. The eternal mission of this vile regime is to destroy religion- especially Tibetan Buddhism in this context. When Tibet was invaded, they destroyed every monastery and expelled and murdered the monks and nuns. Not satisfied with their violent destruction of Tibet’s monasteries, it is now destroying Tibet’s precious language in order to transform Tibetans into Chinese! What the CCP Is doing in occupied Tibet is what the European colonisers did to their colonies. The white colonisers suppressed the distinct language of their colonies and imposed their own language. The CCP peddles itself as anti-colonialism but in fact it is an epitome of imperialism and colonialism! Actions speak louder than words! The CCP’s action in occupied Tibet is reprehensible and is a photo copy of European imperialism and colonialism! It is time the international community calls a spade a spade and acknowledge Chinese denial of Tibetans to learn their language, the destruction of Tibet’s priceless cultural heritage which consists of its monumental Buddhist cannons which have been preserved in the holy monasteries that were burnt down and now the suppression of Tibetan language including the very name (TIBET) are a clear instance of GENOCIDE that is motivated by a CLEAR INTENTION TO DESTROY A PEOPLE TO ETERNAL OBLIVION!