Tibetologist slams human rights report

A Tibetologist has dismissed Tibet-related remarks in a Human Rights Watch (HRW) report as "indiscreet" and "distorted," saying the region has witnessed vast development in recent decades.

New York-based HRW released the "World Report 2013" Thursday, accusing China's central government of imposing overly tight control in the Tibet Autonomous Region and undermining Tibetans' livelihoods.

Zhang Yun, a researcher with the China Tibetology Research Center, responded in a signed article publicized on Xinhua Monday that the Chinese government has spared no efforts to promote Tibet's socio-economic progress, improve its eco-environment, protect its ethnic culture, and improve its people's well-being.

"China-related parts in the report turn a blind eye to facts, make indiscreet comments on the situation in Tibet, speak highly of crimes in Tibetan areas, and foment discord between the central government and Tibetan people," the article said.

The HRW report highlights the government drive to build "a New Socialist Countryside" on the Tibetan plateau, saying it involves "large development programs mandating rehousing or relocating up to 80 percent of the rural population...with no effective choice and without genuine consultation of those affected, while compensation mechanisms are opaque and inadequate."

It adds, "Pastoralists deprived of their traditional livelihood face declining living standards and increased dependency on government subsidies."

In his article, "Tibet is on a Fast Track to Civilization," Zhang called such assertions "distorted," citing stories of three Tibetan herders who, during the housing projects, "have relocated from dark, cramped and crude shelters to spacious and bright modern buildings."

Zhang said in the article, "Tibetan people evaluate government policies with their own criteria."

The housing projects carried out by the central and local governments, have integrated state subsidies, local government input, Tibetans' self-raised funds, as well as aid and donations from outside Tibet.

Relocated herding families are equipped with livestock pens, herbage storages and solar wells, which has helped to enhance the grassland ecology, lower livestock's mortality and raise the survival rate of new-born animals, Zhang explained.

These families now have access to better medical services and their children better educational opportunities, it said.

The state government has for years attached importance to developing the west regions and "pooled nationwide resources to support Tibet," Zhang said.

A 15-year compulsory education program has been extended to cover children of herding and farming families in the region, which exempts the students from expenses on learning, meals and accommodation, he added.

To narrow the "digital gap" between Tibet and the rest of the country, the government has also launched projects to ensure radio and television services, as well as internet access, at village level, according to Zhang.

"More and more farmers, herders, monks and nuns are sharing the fruits of modern civilization," Zhang said.

Zhang also noted government projects that have "effectively curbed grassland degradation and desertification."

Tibet has 47 nature reserves at the state- and autonomous region-levels, which span 413,700 square kilometers, or 34.47 percent of its gross area, "a ratio incomparable across the nation," the article said.

Zhang also stressed the government's long-term efforts to preserve and pass on traditional ethnic culture in Tibet.

The Potala Palace, Norbulingka Garden and Sakya Monastery, three of Tibet's most important cultural relics, have been renovated in the last seven years, costing the government 380 million yuan (about 61.03 million U.S. dollars), according to Zhang.

Tibet now boasts more than 800 items of intangible cultural heritage at all levels, with 76 items, like traditional Tibetan medicine, Tibetan paper and Thangka, on the state-level list. A total of 53 people have been chosen as representative successors of state-level intangible cultural heritage items.

"There are great prospects for the development of traditional ethnic culture," Zhang said.

It is obvious to all that Tibet has scored marked economic, social and cultural progress, against all the sabotage from some anti-China forces in the West and separatist forces in and outside the country.

The HRW is looking at China through colored spectacles, Zhang concluded.