Tibet’s future remains imperiled by the Chinese government’s continued efforts to sever the generational links that sustain Tibetan culture. Recent reports have analyzed how this dynamic plays out in the realms of education and religion. Earlier this year, The New York Times published an investigation into Tibetan boarding schools, which “assimilate a generation of Tibetans into the national mainstream and mold them into citizens loyal to the Communist Party.” The Tibet Action Institute, whose groundbreaking 2021 report first brought widespread attention to the issue of the Chinese government’s colonial-style boarding schools in Tibet, released a new report this Wednesday under the title, “When They Came to Take Our Children: China’s Colonial Boarding Schools and the Future of Tibet.” The executive summary outlined the report’s key findings regarding the Chinese government’s ongoing project to impose the “deliberate reshaping of [Tibetan] children’s identity in boarding schools”:
Children are highly vulnerable to negligence and abuse in Chinese government-run boarding schools;
In rural areas, preschool boarding can start as young as age four;
Students are restricted from enrolling in Tibetan language classes or engaging in religious activities, even during school breaks;
Tibetan children are losing their mother tongue as Tibetan-medium schooling and language classes are shut down;
The separation from family and deliberate reshaping of children’s identity in boarding schools is causing emotional and psychological harm, including attachment trauma and alienation;
The colonial boarding school system violates both Chinese domestic law and international law and is contrary to best practices that have been conveyed to the Chinese government for decades by numerous bodies of the United Nations; and
Initiatives by Tibetans to develop culturally-relevant educational resources have been harshly suppressed by the Chinese government, but the desire and expertise to build a Tibetan-run education system still exists. [Source]
In the realm of religion, the Chinese government has continued its opposition to the current Dalai Lama, Tibet’s spiritual leader, by attempting to control the selection of his successor. The International Tibet Network and Tibet Justice Center published a report this month titled “Protecting Tibetan Religious Rights: Addressing China’s Reincarnation Policies,” which highlights the Chinese government’s influence over the reincarnation system in Tibet and its importance to Tibetan identity:
This briefing shares a rare glimpse into the CCP’s preparations for the “post-Dalai era” or the “after-Dalai era” when they seek to usurp both spiritual and political authority in Tibet. Chinese policy documents, written by Chinese scholars from Party-run institutes, show discussions are being had regarding China’s own appointment of a 15th Dalai Lama candidate and the use of the CCP-approved Panchen Lama to serve this end. The existence of flawed legislation, the introduction of domestic legislation governing Tibetan Buddhist reincarnations, and the establishment of an official Tibetan reincarnate Buddhists database are also part of the CCP’s efforts to determine a future Dalai Lama candidate and accelerate control over the reincarnation process.
[…] Beijing’s struggle to appropriate and control the reincarnation system strikes at the heart of Tibetan religious identity; reincarnation is central to Tibetan Buddhist belief and practice rooted in the concept of the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth. Tibetans have evolved a unique system of recognising reincarnations of spiritual masters who are dedicated to developing compassion and helping all sentient beings. From the Fifth Dalai Lama’s leadership in the 17th century, reincarnate lamas became the core of the Buddhist government of Tibet, combining religious and political authority. [Source]
In his latest book, published in March, the 14th Dalai Lama—who will be 90 years old on July 6—stated for the first time that his successor would be born in the “free world,” outside of Tibet and China. Normally the successor is sought out by the Panchen Lama, the second highest figure in Tibetan Buddhism, but the current Panchen Lama remains under the control of the Chinese government, as he has been since he was kidnapped as a little boy 30 years ago this month. (The Chinese government unilaterally “disqualified” the boy and installed its own hand-picked candidate, who is regarded as a usurper by many of the faithful.) Human Rights Watch released a statement calling forcefully for his release:
“The Chinese government kidnapped a 6-year-old and his family and have disappeared them for 30 years to control the selection of the next Dalai Lama and thus Tibetan Buddhism itself,” said Yalkun Uluyol, China researcher at Human Rights Watch. “Concerned parties should press the Chinese government to end this cruelty and secure the freedom of Gendun Choki Nyima and his family.”
The Chinese government forcibly disappeared the then 6-year-old on May 17, 1995, three days after the Dalai Lama recognized him as the 11th Panchen Lama. Even pictures of Gendun Choki Nyima, along with those of the Dalai Lama, are prohibited in Tibet.
[…] Authorities also detained Jadrel Rinpoche, the abbot of Tashi Lhunpo Monastery who oversaw the search for the Panchen Lama’s reincarnation, and arrested more than 30 monks from the monastery. Jadrel Rinpoche’s whereabouts and well-being are also unknown, according to the Dalai Lama. [Source]
Earlier this month, CNN’s Steven Jiang reported on his government-organized media tour of Tibet, alongside two dozen other foreign journalists and a team of Chinese officials. The trip provided an opportunity to observe how Tibet had changed in the 16 years since Jiang’s last visit. Describing a memorable experience from his last trip at Jokhang Temple in Lhasa, Jiang wrote: “[A] young monk told me that, as a faithful Tibetan Buddhist, he recognized and respected the Dalai Lama – before being whisked away by officials.” This time, at the Potala Palace and Jokhang Temple, monks and officials parroted Beijing’s official party line.
But even today, the Dalai Lama’s influence lives on inside many Tibetans on the plateau. The Wall Street Journal recently shared the story of a 25-year-old Tibetan activist named Nam Kyi, who made a daring escape from Lhasa to Nepal in 2023. One of her family members had self-immolated in protest of the Chinese government’s repression, leading her at age 15 to carry a photo of the Dalai Lama as a brief form of protest. She was then arrested, imprisoned, beaten, and put under surveillance, but she refused to disavow the Dalai Lama. “He knows all about the beatings you give us here,” she said she told her captors. “The way you can look through security cameras, the Dalai Lama can see things.”
Tibet’s future also depends on language. The erasure of Tibetan and other minority languages in favor of Mandarin, as well as attempts to replace the term “Tibet” with “Xizang,” risks severing Tibetans from their cultural roots and normalizing the Chinese government’s authority over the region. This month, Gerald Roche wrote about the risk of extinction facing Tibetan languages, and Tenzin Dorjee and James Leibold wrote about how Tibetan autonomy is in large part anchored to its name.
On a related note, the International Campaign for Tibet published a report last week analyzing what it called a "crisis of credibility" for Tibetan officials in leadership roles, noting that many of them appear to have been selected on the basis of their loyalty to the CCP, rather than their level of concern for the long-term welfare of the Tibetan people.
For more on the topic of Tibet’s future, see CDT’s interview series focusing on Tibet, which includes conversations with Lhadon Tethong on Tibetans’ “spirit of resistance” and Bhuchung Tsering on how to ensure Tibet’s survival.