Want China Times
Staff Reporter
August 28, 2015
A Tibetan Buddhist monk walks into the Jokhang Temple on June 18, 2009 in Lhasa, Tibet. (Photo by Feng Li/Getty Images/CFP)
After the conclusion of the CPC Central Committee and State Council’s 6th Forum on Tibetan Work, Chinese president Xi Jinping stated that the focus of policy towards Tibet should be centered on maintaining national integrity and unity among Chinese people, as well as ensuring the long-term peaceful governance of the region and to crackdown on separatism and maintain an unshakeable stance against the campaign of the Dalai Lama and his followers, according to Duowei News, a media outlet run by overseas Chinese.
Xi also came up with a catchy 20-character summary of his Tibet policy which roughly translates as, “Rule Tibet by law; Make Tibetans prosper and Tibet thrive; Build Tibet up over the long-term; Consolidate hearts and minds; Build a solid foundation,” the first major policy announcement on Tibet since the 18th CPC National Congress.
Xi’s attempt to set the basic tone of policy for the next five to ten years, comes in the run up to celebration marking the 50th year of the establishment of the Tibet autonomous region and seems largely to continue China’s previous stance. This does not mean that there are no changes, as there were some new touches, including, “ruling Tibet by law” and “insisting on people’s equality before the law.
Xi made many references to anti-separatism in his speech and stated that separatists or people attempting to disturb social stability should be dealt with according to the law.
A state-media report on the forum commented on the Dalai Lama and his “Middle Way Approach” which looks to “peacefully resolve the issue of Tibet and to bring about stability and co-existence between the Tibetan and Chinese peoples based on equality and mutual co-operation,” according to the Dalai Lama’s official website, stating that the separatist tendencies of the Dalai Lama and his followers have not changed, but that they are just adopting a new strategy to achieve the same goal. The article stated that the Dalai Lama’s Middle Way Approach does not acknowledge Tibet to be Chinese territory, is opposed to the principles enshrined in the Chinese Constitution, does not accept the socialist system being implemented in Tibet or its status as an autonomous region of China and wishes to unify the 12 Tibetan autonomous prefectures across the four provinces of Qinghai, Gansu, Sichuan and Yunnan under an independent Tibet.
The article also stated that the “Middle Way Approach” would never be accepted by the Chinese government, suggesting a continuing hard-line stance on the Dalai Lama.
The Dalai Lama has attempted to court Xi Jinping several times since the latter assumed power, even making reference to his friendship with Xi’s father Xi Zhongxun. The Dalai Lama has also consistently expressed a wish to visit Mount Wutai, but the comments from Xi suggest that this is unlikely.
Although the date of the celebrations for the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Tibet autonomous region are yet to be announced, in previous years they have taken place on Sept. 1.
Previously there had been suggestions that changes were in the air for China’s policy on ethnic minorities and Tibet, when chair of the Subcommittee of Ethnic and Religious Affairs of the CPPCC National Committee Zhu Weiqun and Alai, a Tibetan writer from Sichuan, held a series of discussions on the stability and development of Sichuan’s three Tibetan autonomous prefectures and the future of China’s ethnic minorities.
Zhu stated in the discussion, “It is time for reflection and changes to policy on ethnic minorities.” Although the idea of taking emphasis off ethnic differences in order to strengthen national identity is hardly new, many interpreted the discussion between Zhu and Alai as suggesting changes were in store for China’s ethnic minority policy, allowing them to adopt a less passive stance in Chinese politics.
After the discussion between Zhu and Alai was republished in a Hong Kong news outlet, it was criticized by seven opinion pieces in China Ethnic News, a paper run by the State Ethnic Affairs Commission. The opinion pieces accused Zhu and Alai of fabricating a contradiction and conflict between ethnic differences and national identity. The pieces accused Zhu and Alai of taking a homogenous ethnic identity and homogenous culture to be the standard, in a move similar to the Kuomintang’s strategy of homogenization and exclusion. The pieces said that differences must be acknowledged, but at the same time, they acknowledged that the use of the term “look after” was derogatory when used in reference to China’s policy on its ethnic minority peoples.
Zhu was, for a long time, vice minister in charge of daily affairs for the United Front Work Department and once served as China’s representative in negotiations with the Dalai Lama. Zhu previously discussed ethnic identity in a study report he published at the beginning of 2012, which attracted a lot of attention at the time. At the beginning of 2013 Zhu was moved to a secondary-level post, as the chair of the Subcommittee of Ethnic and Religious Affairs of the CPPCC National Committee, but he is still voicing his opinion on the sensitive issue.
A state-run paper openly criticizing a member of a CPPCC National Subcommittee is very rare and what’s rarer still is that Zhu has not chosen to bear the criticism in silence, mocking the paper for behavior worthy of the Cultural Revolution. This suggests that divisions exist within the Communist Party on ethnic minority issues, specifically with regard to the governance of Tibet.
The hopes kindled by the talks between Zhu and Alai that China will reflect on its policy towards ethnic minorities and Tibet in particular appear to have been extinguished by Xi’s recent comments.
