Sindh Today
May 23, 2009

London, May 22 (ANI) -- Chinese rule in Tibet is
based upon ethnic inequality by empowering an
elite class, who in turn, remain loyal to
Beijing, an unprecedented report has claimed.

Written by scholars in Beijing, the report has
been hailed by both Tibetans and Chinese as a
revealing look at the troubled region.

It says that a new Tibetan ‘aristocracy’ has
seized power in the region. Unlike Tibet’s
previous rulers, who were supported by the tribes
and by the monasteries, the new Tibetan ruling
cadres are funded by Beijing in return for absolute loyalty.

They have spread propaganda blaming the Dalai
Lama for Tibet’s social problems to mask their
shortcomings and reinforce their power, the report concludes.

"They use every opportunity to play the
separatism card," The Telegraph quoted Phun
Tshogs Dbang Rjyal, a Communist party member in Tibet, as saying.

As part of the research, four Beijing University
students traveled through Tibet in the aftermath
of widespread riots in March 2008.

Commissioned by Gongmeng, or the Open
Constitution Initiative, the report’s conclusions
provide a more balanced look of Tibet’s social
problems, highlighting problems in the local
government and the education system.

"This is the first independent analysis of the
situation in Tibet from within China. This is a
factual analysis of the underlying social
factors,” said Nicholas Becquelin, a research director at Human Rights Watch.

An unrest began in Lhasa last year that quickly
spread through Tibet, leading to an armed
response by Chinese soldiers and the loss of over
140 lives, according to the Tibetan government-in-exile.

China blamed the Dalai Lama for fanning the
violence, and said that over 100 agents of
Tibet’s religious leader had organized the protests.

The report highlighted the tensions caused by a
drive to industrialize the region and move
Tibetans from farms into the cities, where they
find it hard to compete for jobs with better-educated Han immigrants.

The report had won support on internet forums,
but has not yet been published formally. ‘We are
not sure how it will be received,’ the report’s editor Yang Ziyun said. (ANI)