As Olympic Flame Approaches, Disappearances Continue in Lhasa

By International Campaign for Tibet

Reports received by ICT indicate stringent restrictions in Lhasa, a city already under crackdown, in the buildup to the arrival of the Olympic torch. These same restrictions were also in place at the beginning of the important Tibetan religious festival of Saga Dawa from June 4, which the authorities feared might be a flashpoint for further protest.

Informers and police in plain clothes were visible on the streets during Saga Dawa, often disguised as beggars and pilgrims, in addition to uniformed personnel. Schoolchildren were warned that they should discourage their families from carrying out traditional pilgrimages at this time. A Tibetan source told ICT: "Teachers at one kindergarten told children that they would be expelled if their relatives attended ceremonies for Saga Dawa."

No foreign tourists or unescorted media are currently permitted to enter the TAR. A group of China-based international correspondents are arriving in Lhasa today (June 20) for a two-day visit that will be tightly controlled by the authorities.

A Tibetan source now in exile told ICT: "In the buildup to the arrival of the Olympic torch, people are under even greater scrutiny than before and are frightened. They are stockpiling dry foods in their homes because some expect even more protests, and more of a crackdown."

In a further example of the intense level of security in the buildup to the arrival of the Olympic torch, a state media report stated that "In order to perform a good job of sacred Olympic torch security work and to create measures for convenient customs clearance, emergency coordination systems have been established". ('Raise safety awareness, broaden scope of inspection', June 17, 2008, www.chinatibetnews.com). The same report states: "During this time, 100% of tourist luggage shall be inspected; on the basis of risk analysis, 100% of imported goods which conform to the standards of the analysis shall be inspected. At the same time, strengthen the scope of clearance, and focus on the implementation of monitoring and investigating."

The government has stepped up propaganda efforts in order to present an image that Lhasa is "back to normal" prior to the arrival of the Olympic torch. One Tibetan source said: "The Chinese authorities will ensure that people's shops are open and that Tibetans are doing the kora [the religious ritual of circumambulation around the Jokhang temple in the Barkor] on the days the foreign reporters will be in Lhasa." Despite the heavy restrictions in place, the Party also attempted to convey a scene of normality when TAR Party Secretary Zhang Qingli was shown in the Barkhor on Xizang (Tibet) TV last week. In the background, Tibetans could be seen circumambulating the Jokhang.

On an "inspection tour" of six monasteries in Lhasa, reported in the Chinese media on June 5, Zhang Qingli was shown assessing the "patriotic education and political situation at Sera, Drepung, Ramoche, Potala and Jokhang temples" (Xizang TV). Zhang Qingli was quoted as saying "In order to attain our goal of political education in the monasteries, we have built up a suitable political environment in order to clean up influences of the 'Dalai Clique' and crack down on his supporters. The political education program in the monasteries is one of the most important programs of the TAR government and the central government has been paying great attention to this too. Anyone who tries to disturb our campaigns must be punished right away and decisively, in order to establish a proper foundation for the long term peaceful political environment in the monasteries."

A recent report in China's state media directly linked the patriotic education campaign with ensuring "security and stability" during the Olympics, and stated that "patriotic education" in one monastery in Lhundrub (Chinese: Linzhou) county in the TAR included passing onto monks "relevant knowledge" about the Olympics.

The report stated: "In order to create a peaceful and harmonious Lhundrub and to ensure security and stability during the period of the Olympic sacred flame torch relay and the Olympics, Lhundrub county People's Armed Police has demanded that People's Armed Police leaders in all townships vigorously carry out patriotic education in monasteries under their jurisdiction, and that monks at monasteries study the 'Regulations on Religious Affairs', that the state's laws and regulations as well as the Party's nationality policies and religion policies and regulations are propagandized to the monks, that the great developments in Tibet's society and relevant knowledge about the Olympics are propagandized, making use of available and typical examples to educate the broad masses of monks and nuns in order to strengthen their patriotic sentiment and their understanding of the law, and to make them conscientiously uphold the unification of the motherland and oppose ethnic splittism." ('Linzhou county rolls out patriotic education in monasteries', June 18, 2008, www.chinatibetnews.com.)

The information blackout in Lhasa and throughout Tibetan areas is stringently imposed with the confiscation of mobile phones and blocking of internet connections. ICT has received reports of Tibetan families who have received immediate visits from security personnel after taking phone calls from family or friends in exile. In one case, a young Tibetan woman was beaten so severely in an act of reprisal for taking a call that she had to be hospitalized.

A Tibetan source told ICT: "All communication lines are bugged. Skype messages are stored somewhere for future use. Any deleted file can be recovered on the same PC."

Another Tibetan source, who is now in exile, gave ICT the following account of the atmosphere in Lhasa: "Roundups of Tibetans happens at night, usually around two o'clock in the morning. Every one is so petrified, whether they took part in any of the protests in March or not. When house to house searches began [after March 14], Tibetans had such a hard time hiding their secret pictures of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. There are grim tales of the dead and arrests. Family members of those missing went from prison to prison searching for their loved ones. Many are still missing. One friend of mine saw a truck escorted by two police cars, one in the front, one in the back. When they looked closely, they saw that it appeared to be carrying the body of at least one monk. They could see the monks' robes.

"Everyone knew the significance of March 10 as a date. Even before that date, intensified restrictions had been evident, because the authorities knew it too. People were aware and expected something to happen because His Holiness is getting more popular around the world and also because it is Olympic year."

According to a separate source, Tibetans who have been released after a period in detention are severely affected: "[Many of] those released are facing serious physical injuries or mental disorders." The same source said that several local Tibetan policemen who had complained of excessive torture and aggressive interrogation tactics had disappeared, although this could not be confirmed.

International Campaign for Tibet

judythpiazza@newsblaze.com

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