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GENERAL ASSEMBLY
Human Rights Council
Seventh session
Item 4
HUMAN RIGHTS SITUATIONS REQUIRE THE COUNCIL’S ATTENTION – General Debate

Joint NGO Statement:

1. Society for Threatened Peoples, delivered by Mr. Tenzin S. KAYTA
2. International Fellowship of Reconciliation (IFOR)
3. Mouvement contre le racisme et pour l’amitié entre les peuples (MRAP)
4. Liberation
5. International Educational Development
6. International Movement Against All Forms of Discrimination and Racism (IMADR)
7. Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA)
8. Worldview International Foundation
9. International NGO Forum on Indonesian Development (INFID)
10. Interfaith International

Thank you, Mr. President,

Since the imposition of martial law in Tibet from 8 March 1989 to 30 April 1990 [i], the Chinese authorities have pursued a policy of "merciless repression" of even the slightest signs of Tibetan political dissent. Despite this climate, in the last four days reports have emerged of peaceful protests by monks of the Drepung and Sera monasteries, located on the outskirts of Lhasa, the Tibetan capital which led to the arrests of over 60 monks [ii]. Various sources, including foreigners in Lhasa [iii], indicate that the protests on Monday, 10 March [iv] involved as many as two to three hundred monks, and a smaller protest in central Lhasa by 14 monks [v] and 2 Tibetan youths who were immediately arrested. Radio Free Asia reported that 500 to 600 monks continued protests on Tuesday [vi] and were confronted by over a thousand armed police and personnel of the Public Security Bureau (the police), who fired tear-gas at the protesters. These protests, now spreading to other areas with Tibetan monks [vii] in Qinghai and Gansu Provinces staging demonstrations, represent the largest by monks since the period of martial law.

Mr. President, the latest peaceful protests in Tibetan areas occur in the wider context of the overwhelming Tibetan discontent with China’s repressive policies. As is evident from the many Tibetan cases covered by the reports of the Special Procedures of this Council, China seeks to eliminate all dissenting opinion by Tibetans, creating a climate of fear and a culture of impunity. The November 2007 sentencing of the Tibetan nomad, Ronggye Adrak, and three other Tibetans to a total of 30 years for peacefully expressing their views in defence of the aspirations of the Tibetan people is but one example.

Against this increasingly oppressive atmosphere in Tibet, a new report, "Tracking the Steel Dragon" [viii] released last month by the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT) has documented the immediate impact of the Golmud-Lhasa railroad which shows that Beijing's policies on the Tibetan plateau are leading to a “second invasion” by accelerating the influx of Chinese people - 1.5 million people traveled on the railway in its first year, and China admitted that most were businesspeople or workers, not tourists. Although Chinese authorities control rural-urban migration to China's Eastern cities, the influx of Chinese into to Tibet remains totally unchecked, resulting in the exclusion of Tibetans from economic development to an extent where even some Chinese analysts believe Tibetan opposition risks undermining Beijing's ultimate goal of social stability.

We urge China to make sincere efforts to reverse the policies that continue to marginalize the Tibetan people and instead re-orientate its strategy towards the local integration and 'Tibetan-ising' of policy through the participation of Tibetans in decision-making in their own affairs. We also call upon this Council to encourage Beijing to strengthen its current contacts with the Envoys of the Dalai Lama [ix], and to enter into substantive negotiations towards achieving genuine autonomy for Tibetans.

Mr. President, the latest information from Tibet is that monks sealed off at Drepung and Sera monasteries have launched a hunger strike [x] to demand the release of their colleagues. Gaden monastery too has been sealed off after monks there demonstrated on 12 March [xi]. Yesterday, Radio Free Asia reported [xii] that two monks, named Kalsang and Damchoe, from Drepung monastery attempted suicide on Thursday. Sources said the men had stabbed themselves in the chest, hands, and wrists. One source told the Radio: "There are many other monks who hurt themselves in desperation, and protests are going on inside the monastery as of March 12 and 13". Another source described the two monks' condition as critical and said they were not expected to survive.

In conclusion, Mr. President, as the world focuses its attention on the Beijing Olympics, we urge the Human Rights Council, especially its Special Procedures and the High Commissioner for Human Rights, to condemn the use of force against Tibetans peacefully demonstrating their deep discontent, and to pay close attention to the links between the repressive political climate in Tibet and the impacts of centrally driven development policies that threaten the very survival of the cultural, religious and national identity of the Tibetan people.

I thank you, Mr. President.

14 March 2008

Footnotes:
[i] related site(external link)
[ii] Monks arrested as police quash protests in Tibet(external link)
[iii] Today we see how the real situation is in Tibet. The day seems to be silent and peacefull, even boring. Until 6 o´clock. then 100s of Tibetans gather together on the Bakhor Square. They form a strong, silent, peacefull circle around the police who keep the middle of the square open. Soon they call for backup. Undercoveragents, not so difficult to recognize film the whole happening. Especially the faces. This is one method to create fear. Suddenly there is panic. 6 or 7 monks are arrested and driven away. Tibetans are very scared because of the stories about the prisons and tortures. In the mean while big numbers of policemen arrive. They drive everybody apart. related site (external link)
[iv] 10 March is marked by Tibetans as the 49th Anniversary of the Tibetan National Uprising Day.
[v] Portrait of the monks were released on the website of the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy, India (external link)
[vi] Chinese Police Fire Tear-Gas at Protesting Tibetan Monks (external link)
[vii] Monks in Tibet go on hunger strike as protests spread (external link)
[viii] related site (external link)
[ix] “Since 2002, my envoys have conducted six rounds of talks with concerned officials of the People's Republic of China to discuss relevant issues. These extensive discussions have helped to clear away some of their doubts and enabled us to explain our aspirations to them. However, on the fundamental issue, there has been no concrete result at all. And during the past few years, Tibet has witnessed increased repression and brutality. In spite of these unfortunate developments, my stand and determination to pursue the Middle-Way policy and to continue our dialogue with the Chinese government remain unchanged.” – Statement of the Dalai Lama, on the Forty-Ninth Anniversary of the Tibetan National Uprising Day, 10 March 2008. - (external link)
[x] Monks in Tibet go on hunger strike as protests spread (external link)
[xi] Monasteries under lockdown after three days of protest: fears of severe reprisals in Lhasa (external link)
[xii] Tibetan Monks in Critical Condition After Attempted Suicide, as Protests Mount (external link)