Part A - International Human Rights: Fundamental Human Rights Violated.
China frequently quotes it's constitution to support the often quoted statement that the citizens of the People's Republic of China enjoy full rights and freedoms as protected by it's laws. In the latest Chinese embassy press release outlining the, "Achievements of the Chinese government in promoting and safeguarding human rights and fundamental freedoms of the Chinese people", it was stated again that,
"The Chinese government always attaches importance and is committed to the protection and furtherance of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of the Chinese people. The Chinese Constitution provides that all power in the People's Republic of China belongs to the People and that every Chinese citizen, regardless of sex, family background, ethnic status, position, property status and religious belief, is entitled to full democratic rights and freedoms and to the civil, political as well as extensive economic, social and cultural rights. To safeguard the rights enjoyed by the people, the Chinese government has passed a number of laws for regulating government actions and protecting those rights and freedoms of the people from being infringed upon by anyone."
China is bound by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UNDHR), being a member of the United Nations. Specific sections of the UNDHR have been highlighted and evidence presented to establish the violation of each right. China has also ratified and is therefore bound by the following international conventions: Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD); Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW); Convention against Torture (CAT); Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). Permeating all of the human rights violated in Tibet is the Chinese governments reaction against pro-independence or so called "splittist" activities in Tibet.
A. Population Transfer: the Final Solution ?
1. Legal Framework 1
Because Tibet is an occupied country for the purposes of international law, article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention applies. Paragraph 6 states that:
"The occupying power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies".
Population transfer, the transferring of parts of another states civilian population into the territory it occupies, is not illegal unless it results in the violations of fundamental human rights, for instance those enshrined in the ICCPR.2 In a U.N report on the legal framework of population transfer, population transfer was defined as follows:
"Population transfer is clearly unlawful and prohibited where it's purpose or effect constitutes or amounts to genocide, torture and its related elements, slavery, racial and systematic discrimination and interference with the legitimate exercise of the right to self-determination, or where it is manifestly disproportionate to the exception of military necessity in humanitarian law".3
Ever since occupation and at present China is and has been violating the human rights of Tibetan people under their unlawful policy of population transfer.4
2. The Boundaries of Tibet
It must be noted at this point, that Tibet before occupation was divided into three principal regions of Amdo (Dhomey), Kham (Dhotoe) and U-tsang (central). Tibet then comprised 2.5 million square kilometers. China's "Tibet" refers only to what has been redefined as the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) which totals an area of only 1.2 million square kilometers. At the time of Chinese occupation the major part of Amdo was made Qinghai province, by the Chinese Government, and the rest of Kham and Amdo were incorporated with neighboring Chinese provinces of Gansu, Sichuan and Yunnan. This is significant as Kham and Amdo are being flooded with Chinese settlers from China but the Chinese claim that this is not Tibet, so according to their logic they are not transferring their population at all. For instance, in the city of Xining in Amdo, for every 2000 Tibetans there are 700,000 Chinese but when the Chinese quote the statistics on how many Chinese people are living in Tibet they only refer to the " TAR". It is therefore insignificant that Raidi, the deputy party secretary for TAR claimed in March 1994 that 11.9% of the 400,000 people living in the Lhasa municipality - about 47,600 people, are ethnic Chinese and 87.2% are Tibetan 5. If one refers to the pre-1949 boundaries, according to reliable statistics, there are now six million Tibetans and seven million Chinese living in Tibet.
3. Overview of Current Situation
In 1994 many reports were received of the increased presence and transfer of Chinese military troops in Tibet. Immigration policy focused more on a rapid increase of immigration into Tibet after the Third Work Forum on Tibet was held in July, where for the first time the Chinese population transfer policy was publicly admitted. It was also stated that population transfer aimed to foster economic development in Tibet.
4. Chinese Immigration Policy in Tibet in 1994 and Economic Development
The Central government, in Beijing, officially stated their policy of population transfer into Tibet under the guise of economic development at the Third Work Forum on Tibet. The policy emanating from the Third Work Forum on Tibet was published in a book titled, "The golden bridge to stride into the new century - material to publicise the spirit of the Third Forum on Work in Tibet ". According to this policy document, former soldiers, paramilitary troops, cadres, technicians and entrepeneurs were to be encouraged to move to Tibet with incentives provide by the central government in Beijing to do so, such as easy access to employment and housing.
On 4 July, around the time of the Third Work Forum on Tibet, an article in the Tibet Daily reported that Tibet cannot develop on its own and that:
"in the area of manpower we need to get large numbers of Han comrades into Tibet so that they can impart scientific and technological know how, share their scientific management expertise and help Tibet train personnel to speed up its economic development".6
Again, in November 1994, a significant statement was made whereby the party secretary of the TAR, Chen Kuiyuan, addressing a crowd in Chamdo, called for more encouragement to be given to entrepeneurs from China, to open restaurants and shops in Tibet. He was recorded as having said:
"All localities should have an open mind and welcome the opening of various restaurants and stores by people from the hinterland".7
In December 1994 it was announced that students would also be added to the list.8
5. The Increased Presence of Troops in Tibet
China is flooding Tibet with Chinese soldiers from the mainland. These soldiers are not recorded in the official Chinese census figures. It was reported by Tibetan Youth Congress last year that:
"There is new evidence that the militarisation of Lhasa has gained momentum since March 1994. Approximately 30,000 troops are [thought] to have moved from inland China, one detachment for Lanzhou and two from Chengdu. This represents a 60% increase in troops in central Tibet. Again this is part of the Lhasa 2000 initiative".9
The increase in troops and paramilitary forces became a priority in immigration policy in Tibet after the Third Work Forum on Tibet. Chinese paramilitary troops and former soldiers were encouraged to take up positions as cadres in Tibet.
Reports from Tourists visiting Tibet in 1994 also confirmed the presence of large numbers of troops in Tibet. These tourists reported the heavy presence of army trucks transporting soldiers into Tibet.
6. Economic Discrimination Caused by Population Transfer
Population transfer in Tibet has led to the discrimination of Tibetans in economic development policies. Erhard Haubold, a journalist from Germany published an article last year on his visit to Lhasa in October 1994. He confirmed that:
"Trade and administration in Tibet is controlled by the Chinese. From amongst 31,000 small enterprises (restaurants, beauty parlors, tailors, carpenters) in Lhasa, practically 26,000 are in Chinese hands".
See also the section on the right to education.
B. The Right to Freedom of Religion Violated10
Introduction
In respecting freedom to believe and practice religion, the Chinese government is bound by article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 11. Being a member of the UN China is also bound to observe the UN Declaration on the Elimination of all Forms of Intolerance and Discrimination based on Religion or Belief, adopted by the UN General Assembly on 25 Nov 1981.
The Constitution of the People's Republic of China (1982): Article 36 states that:
"Citizens of the People's Republic of China enjoy freedom of religious belief. No state organ, public organisation or individual may compel citizens to believe in, or not to believe in, any religion; nor may they discriminate against citizens who believe in, or do not believe in, any religion. The state protects normal religious activities. No one may make use of religion to engage in activities that disrupt public order, impair the health of citizens or interfere with the educational system of the state. Religious bodies and religious affairs are not subject to any foreign domination".
As regards infringements of the citizens' right to the freedom of religious belief, Article 147 of China's Criminal law also stipulates:
"State personnel who unlawfully deprives citizens of their legitimate freedom of religious belief or infringes upon the customs and habits of ethnic groups, when the circumstances are serious, are to be sentenced to not more than two years of fixed-term imprisonment or criminal detention".
1994 highlighted the harshness of the CCP policy towards restricting the practice of religion in Tibet. Despite the campaign against freedom of religion that was implemented in 1994, a Chinese embassy press release emphatically stated, this year, that:
"Chinese citizens enjoy full freedom of religious belief. Believers are free to carry out religious activities in shrines, mosques, churches or their own homes according to their respective religious tenets or customs. The legitimate rights of religious organisation and their places of worship are protected, religious personnel are entitled to respect and support when performing religious duties". 12
1. Overview of the situation in 1994.
Permeating Chinese government policy on religion in Tibet is the Chinese reaction against pro-independence or so called "splittist" activities in Tibet. Freedom of religion as positivised in the UNDHR is defined and implemented according to what the Chinese term "normal" religious activities, as stated in their constitution. In traditional Tibetan society religion permeated all aspects of social, economic and political life and religious activities were directed into these spheres. The tradition carries on today as religious activities include demonstrating against an occupying force that pays no heed or credence to Buddhist policies on how the state should be run. The intoleration of "abnormal" religious activities in 1994 was particularly highlighted by the contradiction in Chinese policy, on religion in the TAR, where, on the one hand "the freedom to believe" policy was announced whilst at the same time restrictions on freedoms of religion continued to be implemented.
2. The Special Rapporteur on Religious Intolerance Visit to Tibet in November 1994
The Special Rapporteur on religious intolerance, Mr Abdelfattah Amor, a Tunisian Jurist, visited Tibet in November 1994. After his visit he published a report criticising China's religious policy in Tibet and most notably he highlighted China's inadequate and inconsistent definition of "freedom of religion" 13. In his Report he stated that China should Introduce a law on religious tolerance and that it should amend its Constitution. He stated in his report that:
"Currently the Chinese Constitution allows citizens the freedom to display religious beliefs, but does not specifically allow freedom of religious belief as such. Chinese law only permits "normal" religious activities, a term which is not defined and the UN recommends in the report that the Distinction between "normal" and "abnormal" religious activities be abolished ".14
3. The Development of Religious Policy in the TAR for 1994:
A "TAR" decree issued at the beginning of the year, on March 30, called for the scrutiny and investigation of various bodies. The monasteries and nunneries in Tibet were targeted as one of the main areas for scrutiny and investigation. On June 30, the Lhasa City Communist Party called on offices and departments throughout Lhasa, to actively carry out the investigation and scrutiny programme. The construction of monasteries was ordered to be stopped. In July the Third Work Forum on Tibet announced the Freedom to believe policy whilst continuing to control the monasteries via the implementation of "TAR" policy. President Jiang was quoted in the Third Work Forum as having said that:
"We should implement the policy on respecting freedom to believe in religion in an appropriate and all round manner and respect and protect proper religious activities". 15
At the same time and before this "freedom to believe" policy was announced, "TAR" officials, were implementing a policy announced in May 1994 which had instructed CCP members to remove all religious symbols from their homes. This move was justified according to communist atheist ideology but aimed to restrict all Buddhist practices.16
The years events, culminated in an aggressive campaign against the monasteries and even towards His Holiness the Dalai Lama himself. For instance, in August and thereafter, CCP government orders were issued in Tibet banning the display of photo's of the Dalai Lama. This shift in policy was significant as it no longer made allowances for the Dalai Lama's religious role. A statement made in a CCP meeting paper highlighted the motivations behind the harsh policy aimed at restricting freedom of religious activities in Tibet. It stated that:
"Our struggle with the Dalai Clique is not a question of believing or not believing in religion or of implementing or not implementing autonomy but a question of safeguarding the motherland and opposing splittism". 17
Through reports received from Tibet, by TIN and also reports sent to the Special Rapporteur on religious intolerance who visited Tibet in November, it was established that the campaign against the Dalai Lama had become widespread, including not only government officials but also non-government employees. Photo's of the Dalai Lama being sold or displayed were made illegal and anyone seen to be wearing or selling them faced severe punishment.
On 13 September 1994, the TAR's "Interim regulations on Public Security" were adopted by the "TAR" People's Congress Standing Committee. Chapter 1 listed the general principles and stated that, "The fundamental tasks of public security are to combat those who aim to "split the motherland" and commit social evils, and to manage temples and monasteries well in order to prevent religious activities which endanger the unity of the motherland". Chapter 5 of the regulations state that ideological, moral and legal education should be given by local authorities especially in Temples and monasteries."18
In November, what TIN labelled the "first phase to restrict freedom of religion"19 was put into place - it was the sending of work teams to the monasteries and nunneries. It cites the policy documents as:
(i) a directive issued by the Propaganda Committee (CCP-TAR) under the title, "The golden bridge to reach the new era" published in the Tibet daily, Lhasa, 25 Nov 1994 and:
(ii) official document of the CCP-TAR.
Towards the end of the year an aggressive campaign to control "abnormal" religious activities was well under way as witnessed in the intensification of the duties of the "works teams". The Human Rights Desk reported that20 :
"the Secretariat Bureau of the Lhasa City Administration announced that, under the supervision of the Lhasa City Committee, the Lhasa Local Government and the Lhasa City Politics and Law Administrative Commission, 123 Members will join together to form ten work teams for the purpose of collaborating with 17 neighborhood committees to observe and investigate activities of the Tibetan people, including those related to religious activities".
4. Operation of the Work teams in 1994.
Democratic management committees were set up in all monasteries, according to a statement by Zhou Dunyou, an official from the Nationalities affairs commission.21
Work teams were sent to those monasteries labelled as "pro-independent" such as Ganden and Sera monasteries near Lhasa. These work teams aimed to control "religious activities" in the monasteries in order to contain the wave of "splittism" in Tibet. Work teams, which carried out political re-education campaigns, spent up to three months in regular visits to each of the main nunneries in or near Lhasa - Chubsang, Guru, Tsankhung, Michungri and Shubseb. The teams, usually consisting of nine or ten party cadres, held indoctrination sessions and imposed new regulations, including the ban on the admission to the nunnery of any women who had been detained for political activities.22
Reports flooded in at the end of the year, relating to the operation of these work teams. One report, in November, stated that the "TAR" authorities had sent a work team to Ganden monastery to investigate whether all the monks in residence were holding permits authorising them to be at the monastery. It was reported that monks found to be without permits were told to leave the premises immediately.
TIN reported that a work team toured monasteries near Lhasa in August 1994 to enforce the decision to limit the number of monks 23. Sera Monastery was visited and warned that if they exceeded their quota of 200 monks then all monks would be expelled. 24 This ban on the number of monks and nuns in the monasteries and nunneries was confirmed by a Swedish visit to Tibet in October. The Swedish report stated that the Chinese justified their policy by arguing that the "freedom to believe" policy had succeeded and that there were 1400 monasteries and 34,000 monks which fulfilled the desired quota aimed at.25
5. Interference in the Activities of Religious Leaders Continued
In 1994, the Chinese authorities closely monitored Tibetan attempts to select the reincarnation of the late Panchen Lama who died in 1989. On 19 October senior monks from Tashilunpho monastery, the traditional seat of the Panchen Lama, held a three day ceremony at Lhamo Lhatso, Tibet's most important oracle lake in attempt to confirm the location of the reincarnation.26 A controversy was alive surrounding the question of the involvement of the Dalai lama in exile in the selection process, TIN reported.27
In October, the 10 year old 17th Karmapa from Tibet, visited Beijing. He met with CCP officials and president Jiang Zemin.28 This visit was highly politicised and reported extensively by the media. He was quoted in the media and press reports as having announced that "he loves the CCP" and "prayed for the soul of Mao Tsetung".29
The human rights desk reported this year that in 1994, a head of Purang district of Ngari Province in Western Tibet, Migmar, a 53 year old man was expelled from his job because his son was recognised as the reincarnation of Chesang Rinpoche.
C. The Right to Freedom of Association and Expression Violated
Introduction
In respecting the freedom of Association and expression of Tibetan people, the Chinese authorities are bound by articles 19 & 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.30 The Constitution of the People's Republic of China (1982) attempts to protect the right of all citizens to freedom of association and expression in article 35 which states that:
"Citizens of the People's Republic of China enjoy freedom of speech, of the press, of assembly, of association, of procession and of demonstration".
But Article 51 qualifies this right by stating that::
"The exercise by the citizens of the People's Republic of China of their freedoms and rights may not infringe upon the interests of the state, of society and of the collective or upon the lawful freedoms and rights of other citizens".
1. Overview of the situation in 1994
In 1994 the Chinese authorities continued to violate the rights enshrined in Articles 19 & 20 of the UNDHR. The Chinese authorities continued to severely punish and arrest any Tibetan engaged in peaceful protest or for belonging to an organisation (underground) that threatened to "split the motherland". Nineteen demonstrations were reported to have taken place in 1994, all resulting in arrests and detentions. Amnesty International recorded an overall 628 Tibetan prisoners being detained in Chinese prisons in Tibet for 1994. It must be noted however, that due to the difficulties in receiving reports from Tibet on arrests and detentions, these statistics may not be
accurate.
The right to receive and impart information also continued to be severely curtailed as Tibetans continued to be punished for putting up pro-independence posters and trying to contact the Special Rapporteur on religious intolerance who visited Tibet in November that year. Speculation was made by human rights groups monitoring the human rights situation in Tibet, in relation to a possible shift in Chinese human rights policy when two prominent political prisoners were released after they spent time in prison for attempting to contact visiting European diplomats. Speculation was quickly swept aside when, afterwards, two American citizens were arrested for imparting information to Tibetans inside Tibet and also with reports of the tightening security surrounding the Special Rapporteur's visit.
2. Prisoners of Conscience31 - Peaceful Demonstrations and Defiance Against Chinese Occupation.
In 1994, nineteen demonstrations were reported to have taken place in Tibet and according to unofficial sources, at least one hundred and ten people were arrested for political reasons during the year, including thirty whose names are not yet known (see appendix A for details). Also, Amnesty International in its report in May this year, stated that:
"Although the number of demonstrations in Lhasa decreased, pro-independence protests in rural areas were reportedly on the rise, usually taking the form of demonstrations by monks and nuns".32
Amnesty International has complied a list of all the political prisoners detained in 1994 (see appendix B). The majority of demonstrators were arrested immediately. 33 The mere act of chanting of forming a group of only 2 or 3 people resulted in arrest. The right of Tibetans in Tibet to express their opinions was therefore virtually non-existent in 1994. The majority of demonstrators were monks and nuns although lay people did demonstrate34. The other main concerns of the demonstrators were economic conditions, most notable was the demonstration on 27 May whereby a crowd of 200 Tibetans joined a crowd in Lhasa protesting against an arbitrary tax increase of 20% against shopkeepers.
3. Poster Campaign in Eastern Tibet.
In 1994, reports were also received from Chamdo (Chinese : Qamdo) of poster campaigns which resulted in many arrests of Tibetans in the area. The reports also revealed that the poster campaigns had been successfully operating underground for more than 10 years.
It was reported, that on 8 February 1994, eight Tibetans from Chamdo town and Tsawa Bomi township, Chamdo county, were arrested, following a large scale poster and leaflet campaign calling for Tibetan independence and that on 9 February 1994, when an important regional religious festival was held in the Drayab (pronounced Dayab: Chinese Chagyab) county, large numbers of posters were seen up on walls and offices. In the crackdown which followed the incidents, six monks of Bhu Gon Monastery were arrested.
Then in July, five Tibetans were sentenced to up to fifteen years of imprisonment for alleged "counter -revolutionary" crimes and their sentences were handed down on 6 July 1994. Chime' Dorje, Lobsang Khyi-Kyag and Pema Tsering were all sentenced to fifteen years imprisonment each with deprivation of political rights for five years and Lobsang Palden and Jampa Tashi were both sentenced to twelve years each , with deprivation of political rights for four years. The five had allegedly, "put up posters calling for Tibetan independence with the aim of splitting the motherland" and had on 29 March removed and defaced the nameplate of a communist party building."35 The human rights desk reported that the prisoners were monks from Serwa monastery, in Serwa village, situated in Pashoe county and were all paraded at a public sentencing rally on or just before 6 July.
4. Amdo Political Organisation Members Arrested.
The human rights desk reported last year that several people suspected of forming an underground political organisation in Amdo province were arrested in October 1994. Three men, which included a man called Dhukar Bhum, a 27 year old former editor of Riwo Nyidha magazine in Chabchu, Amdo Province who had escaped to India to study English but had returned to Tibet, were arrested last year and have still not been sentenced.
5. The Right to Impart and Receive Information Denied.
The restriction on receiving and imparting information inside Tibet, continued as the Chinese authorities sought desperately to prevent the outside world from knowing about the serious human rights violations in Tibet. The Chinese authorities in 1994 prevented communication with the Special Rapporteur on religious intolerance when he visited Tibet in November and also prevented Tibetans inside Tibet from receiving information that may strengthen their cause by arresting foreigners who innocently handed information to Tibetans regarding His Holiness, the Dalai Lama in-exile. These restrictions occurred despite the release of two prominent political prisoners who were arrested and imprisoned for attempting to pass on human rights information to visiting European diplomats in 1993.
Gendun Rinchen, a 45 year old tour guide and Lobsang Yonten, a 64 year old former monk were arrested in May 1993 and released at the beginning of the year in January. Human rights organisations speculated that maybe the releases represented a softening on human rights policy but were later disappointed when the arrests of demonstrators continued and also news of the arrests of two American citizens were reported. The European commission issued a statement calling for the release of the two prisoners in June 1993 and the European Parliament passed at least two similar resolutions last year. Pro-Tibetan lobby groups launched a world-wide campaign for the release of the two men and on 10 December, 1993, International human rights day, protests were held outside Chinese embassies in at least nine different countries, including Japan, calling for the release of the two men.
The visit of the UN Special Rapporteur on religious intolerance, Mr Abdelfattah Amor, a Tuniscian jurist led the first ever human right delegation to Tibet. At the time of the special Rapporteurs visit Tibetans inside Tibet attempted to contact the Special Rapporteur but due to tight security could not. Instead TIN in London received and forwarded the reports, written by Tibetans, addressed to the Special Rapporteur, which expressed their main concern of not being able to contact the Special Rapporteur during his visit. The reports further described the intensive activity by security forces surrounding the visit, which prevented any contact.36 TIN reported that:
"the three main monasteries [ Sera, Drepung and Ganden] around Lhasa were sealed off by police during the period of the visit so that monks and nuns could not go into Lhasa".37
One month after President Clinton renewed China's MFN status, two Americans, Karen Aderer and her husband, were arrested and deported from Tibet for handing out a tape of teachings given by the Dalai Lama" to a Tibetan monk living in Tibet.38
D. The Right to be free from Arbitrary Arrest & Detention Violated 39
Introduction
The Chinese authorities are bound by article 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which guarantees all citizens the right to be free from arbitrary arrest, detention and exile. 40 Chinese law provides in its Constitution41 that:
"The freedom of person of citizens of the People's Republic of China is inviolable. No citizen may be arrested except with the approval or by decision of a People's procuratorate or by decisions of a people's court, and arrests must be made by a public security organ. Unlawful deprivation or restriction of citizens' freedom of person by detention or other means is prohibited; and unlawful search of the person of citizens is prohibited."42
The People's Republic of Chinas' Law on Prisons43 also provides for the protection against arbitrary arrest and detention by providing that:
"A criminal's dignity should be respected; his or her personal safety, legitimate property, rights to a defence, complaint, accusation, impeachment case and other rights of which they have not been deprived or have not had limited should not be infringed".
Despite these legal protections, the Chinese authorities continue to violate article 9 UNDHR. Amnesty International has expressed its concern that:
"Trial procedures in Tibet, as elsewhere in the PRC, fall far short of international standards for fairness. Extreme limitations are placed on the rights to defence and confessions - often extracted under torture, are used as evidence. Defendants have no right to call witnesses and have inadequate time and facilities to prepare a defence. In political cases as those cited above, the likelihood that defendants receive a fair hearing is even more remote than in ordinary criminal cases, the outcome usually being a foregone conclusion".44
Due to the violation of article 19 of UNDHR (the right to receive and impart information) it is difficult to accurately assess the numbers of arbitrary arrests and detentions in 1994 however an attempt has been made below.
1. Overview for 1994.
The United Nations ruled in 1994 that the Chinese Government had violated the Human Rights of 61 political prisoners, 39 of them Tibetans and called for them to be released. The UN, which had been asked by human rights groups to consider the sixty six sample cases, decided that the prisoners had been "arbitrarily detained ". The finding was published by the UN's Working Group on Arbitrary Detentions, exactly one year after the decision was communicated to China. Publication of the decision emphasised the Working group's dissatisfaction with China, which either failed to release the prisoners or change its detention practices. The detentions were "in contravention of Articles 19 & 20 of the UDHR" according to the statement issued by the working group, "The right of the persons concerned, to freedom of opinion and expression has not been respected", it was decided. The report was issued in February 1994.47
The table in appendix A on demonstrations occurring in 1994, details the nature of the demonstrations which occurred in 1994 and highlights the arbitrary nature of these arrests and detentions. For instance on March 27, two monks were arrested immediately after they unfolded a Tibetan flag and on 14 June five nuns from Shar Bumpa nunnery, were arrested after they walked around the Barkhor peacefully chanting "free Tibet" and "long live the Dalai Lama". One month after President Clinton renewed China's MFN status, two Americans, Karen Aderer and her husband, were arrested and deported from Tibet for handing out a tape of teachings given by the Dalai Lama".45
In 1994 authorities detained dissidents before high-level visits of foreign leaders. During the Special Rapporteur's visit on religious intolerance, security was high and "in the afternoon, just before the visit, two monks and a nun who were in the Barkhor area were removed by security forces".46 There were also many reports relating to the extension of sentences for minor acts and the extension of detention periods without procutorial approval ie., being detained for many months without being tried.
The legal basis for these arrests and the procedures followed can be strongly questioned. The crime of "counter-revolution" continued to be enforced which allows the officer in charge to assess the nature of the so called "crime" at his/her discretion which led to the arbitrary arrests of many Tibetan dissidents. The legality of detentions can be challenged under the Chinese Administrative procedure law, but since detainees do not have access to lawyers, they have been unable to seek redress under this law in the courts.
E. The Right to be Free from Torture Violated
Introduction
The Chinese authorities are bound by article 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which prohibits torture.47 China has also ratified the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, and is therefore bound to observe it's terms. Article 136 of the Criminal Law of the PRC also states that:
it is strictly forbidden to extort confessions by torture".
The Criminal Procedure Law of the PRC, also reinforces this right to be free from torture by prohibiting "extortion of confessions by torture" or by other "unlawful means". The Regulations on Detention Centers which came into force in March 1990 provide that:
"Beating and verbal abuse, corporal punishment" and "maltreatment" of "offenders" are "strictly forbidden".
The Prison Regulations48, passed by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress on 29 December 1994, serve to protect the rights of prisoners49 whilst they are in police custody, including the right to be free from torture. Article 14 (3), of the Prison regulations, provides that the Prison People's Police may not commit certain acts such as:
extorting confessions through torture or inflicting corporeal punishment on or maltreating prisoners".50
Despite the above legal protections, reported cases of torture and ill-treatment of prisoners in Tibet continued to be frequently reported by former prisoners arriving in Nepal and India. Torture during interrogation, including beatings, electric shocks, deprivation of food or drink, exposure to cold, handcuffing or shackling for long periods and denials of medical treatment were reported to be common.
1. Reported Cases of Torture and Maltreatment for 1994.
The following report was received in early 1994. Three Tibetans who were travelling to India were arrested in Tingri and detained for 11 days in early 1994. According to their testimonies given after escaping to India, they received electric shocks on the face, shoulders and chest during interrogation. They were also kicked in the stomach. One of them said he was put alone in a cell, which had blood stains on the walls and mattresses. Another prisoner told him that these stains were left by a prisoner who had been severely tortured the day before. Later the three prisoners were made to stand barefoot in the snow for an hour in the prison courtyard. During the Chinese and Tibetan new year, the guards threw fire crackers into their cell and the inmates had to cover their heads with blankets to avoid being hurt.51
The human rights desk conducted interviews of new arrivals in June this year. During the interviews the pattern of torture, whilst in police custody, was highlighted. One Tibetan woman from Kham told of her beatings and torture in a Chinese prison after she was deported by the Nepalese authorities after being caught for escaping Tibet. In 1994 several reports were also received of deaths in custody caused by Torture and maltreatment in police custody.
(i) Deaths in Custody and Deaths After Release Caused by Neglect and Maltreatment in Police Custody
The Prison Regulations provide a cause of action for the relatives of a prisoner who has died in police custody to demand an inquiry into the cause of death. Article 55 of the Regulations states that:
"if a family has doubts regarding the medical evaluation of a prisoner who dies while serving a jail term they may raise the issue with the people's procutorate and that if the Prisoner dies of unnatural causes the People's procuratorate shall conduct an immediate examination into the cause of death".
Deaths in custody were reported in 1994 but to date no reports have been received relating to families of the deceased lodging complaints under the above legal mechanisms.
Amnesty International's report on the human rights situation in Tibet for 1994 stated that:
"Amnesty International is concerned that in the recent past, three young Tibetan women have died shortly after release from prison and that the Chinese government's accounts of the reasons for and circumstances of their death are inadequate and did not respond to allegations of ill-treatment. Gyaltsen Kelsang is the tenth political prisoner since 1987 reported to have died shortly after being sent from hospital from prison and the three most recent deaths were young women".52
Phunstsog Yangkyi, a 20 year old Tibetan nun and prisoner of conscience serving her sentence in Drapchi prison, died in a police hospital in Lhasa on June 4 1994. She was serving a five year prison sentence for taking part in a brief pro-independence demonstration in February 1992. According to unofficial sources she was beaten by guards after she and other nuns sang nationalist songs on 11 February 1994. She apparently lost consciousness after medical staff in the prison gave her medication because she was "speaking uncontrollably ".
A Tibetan women, Gyaltsen Kelsang, died in February 1995 53 after she was released from prison. A report received at the human rights desk (DIIR) in 1994 from a woman who had visited her that year reported that Gyaltsen's physical condition was deteriorating rapidly and that she had been subjected to torture and was being denied proper medical treatment. Gyaltsen Kelsang was arrested with eleven other nuns from Garu nunnery, north of Lhasa, on 14 June 1993, accused of pro-independence activities. In late November 1994 she was reportedly taken from Drapchi prison to a police hospital in Lhasa where she was diagnosed as suffering from severe Kidney problems. After admission to the hospital she was reported to have lost movement in her lower limbs and to have suffered speech impairment. The Tibetan woman who visited her in November 1994 reported that:
"from the waist down she was very thin and didn't feel anything in either of her legs...she couldn't eat and her face looked really dry. She was very scared of dying and could hardly speak. She spoke very slowly and she was panting a lot. She said she was going to die soon".54
F. The Right to Education Violated
Introduction
The Chinese government is bound by article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which states that everyone has a right to education.55 Articles 28 & 29 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child also guarantees the child his or her right to an education.56 The Constitution of the People's Republic of China also provides for the right to education.57 Also, the PRC law of Compulsory Education (1986) attempts to make education accessible to every child over the age of six. However, the law on Compulsory Education has been qualified in its implementation for Tibetan children, due to practical difficulties arising from the remoteness of some parts of Tibet. The Compulsory Education law allows a grace period for postponing school attendance up to nine years58.
In independent Tibet there were over six thousand monasteries and nunneries which served as schools and universities, fulfilling Tibet's unique educational needs. Drepung monastery in Lhasa alone had at any given time over 8000 students coming mostly coming from the peasantry. Besides, there were a number of private and government schools all over Tibet. During the invasion and under its occupation rule, China destroyed almost all these centuries old Tibetan institutions of learning. An overwhelming number of them still remain in rubble heaps and their rebuilding or renovation are still not permitted by the occupation authorities. All the learned scholars and teachers, the repositories of Tibet's rich religious, philosophical, intellectual and literary heritage, were persecuted. Most of them were executed or done to death under various forms of persecution. Discriminatory educational policies were also highlighted as the number of Tibetan students were restricted in favour of the Chinese settlers.
1. Overview for 1994
Education in Tibet today under Chinese occupation is neither free nor universally available. There have been several demonstrations staged by Tibetan students in recent years to protest against the high costs of education, discrimination against Tibetan students and Tibetan studies, poor educational facilities, the closure of Tibetan schools, the CCP Patriotic Education campaign which was launched in 1994 and the lack of basic sanitation in the existing schools.59 Despite these protests, these problems continued. 1994 also saw a crackdown in the number of children being sent to Tibetan schools in India, by their parents in Tibet.
2. The Rights of Parents to Choose the Kind of Education That Shall be Given to Their Children Violated
In order to control the outflux of Tibetans to India, who were fleeing Tibet in search for a proper education, Chinese authorities in September 1994 issued orders to Tibetan government officials and employees instructing them to recall their children back to Tibet. On 26 June, Tibetan CCP members and cadres had been questioned about their intentions for sending their children to India.60 Warnings were issued that those who failed to obey the order would be demoted or possibly expelled from their jobs, that their promotions and pay increments would be withheld and that party members would be expelled from the party. The ban was not restricted to cadres and government employees alone, for the order issued by the Chinese authorities also stated that school children being educated in India would also lose their rights to residence permits and entitlement to rations if they did not return to Tibet within a specified time. While the deadline given was 27 December, some of the offices required their employees to comply with the order as early as November 15. The order to Tibetan CCP members was dated 19 September, 1994.
Much speculation was made on the origins of this new policy. Some claimed that it emanated from the Third National Work Forum on Tibet held in July. Others claimed that it was a byproduct of the campaign that called for a crackdown on support amongst cadres, for His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Actually, TIN reported that the form to be filled out by CCP members and cadres, on how many children they were educating in India, if any, was distributed in 1993.61 These instructions not only violated the right of parents to choose the kind of education that their children should have but also the universal freedom to leave and enter one's own country.
3. Discrimination Against Tibetans inside Tibet in Access to Higher Education:
A number of official Chinese publications and documents in 1994 revealed that the education situation in Tibet was lamentable. In May 1994 a report was issued in pursuance to the second conference of the Sixth TAR Chinese People's Consultative conference, which noted that while educational facilities in areas such as Ngari (Chinese: Ali) and Nagchu were deplorable, many students completing their education elsewhere were not qualified for work of any kind. It also pointed out that the annual financial allocation for Tibet University was reduced from ninety million Yuan in 1993 to seventy million this year.62
TIN research for 1994 revealed that in 1994 only 45% of students admitted to the University of Tibet were Tibetan, 55% being Chinese. TIN also reported that:
"although according to Chinese figures only 3% of the Population of the TAR is Chinese. Only three Tibetans were amongst the top 138 students in Lhasa, scoring over 350 marks in their entrance exams".63
TIN also reported that:
"one of the serious complaints of Tibetans is the fact that large numbers of Chinese students whose marks are too low to gain admission to Universities in China proper apply to the university of Tibet and are accepted, pushing aside local (Tibetan) applicants. It is claimed that 2000 Chinese students have gained access by dubious means".64
4. The Forced Closure of Tibetan Schools
In April 1994, the human rights desk (DIIR), reported that one Tibetan School in Lhasa was seized by the Chinese authorities. The founder and director of the school, a Tibetan Lama who is known as Shabdrung Rinpoche, was arrested in late February 1994, for suspected involvement in "counter-revolutionary activities". The school started as a language school but later expanded into an education centre offering classes in Tibetan language, Chinese, astrology etc. Then in May-June 1994 the human rights desk reported that the Chinese authorities had forcibly closed three privately-run schools in Lhasa in February 1994 and briefly detained their founder and principal Shabdrul Lobsang Tsultrim. The schools, Tibet Autonomous Region centre for unemployed youths; Lhasa Shiljong Language school and Lhasa City part time (or evening) school , reportedly handled an estimated 1000 students. Shabdrung Tsultrim established the schools in the eighties to educate Tibetan children and unemployed youths in various job skills. Apart from commercial subjects (typing, secretarial practice and accountancy etc), the schools also taught Tibetan medicine and Tibetan performing arts.
5. CCP Patriotic Education Campaign in Tibet
China is bound by the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD) (1965). Article 4 states that :
"State parties condemn all propaganda and all organisations which are based on ideas or theories of superiority of one race or group of persons of one colour or ethnic origin, or which attempt to justify or promote racial hatred and discrimination in any form, and undertake to adopt immediate and positive measures designed to eradicate all incitement to, or acts of, such discrimination and, to this end, with due regard to the principles embodied in the Universal declaration of Human Rights and the rights expressly set forth in article 5 of this convention, inter alia: (a) shall declare an offence punishable by law all dissemination of ideas based on racial superiority or hatred, incitement to racial discrimination, as well as all acts of violence or incitement to such acts against any race or group of persons of another colour, or ethnic origin and also the provision of any assistance to racist activities, including the financing thereof...".
In September 1994, the CCP launched a three year "Patriotic Education" campaign to "quash youthful visions of an independent Tibet or the return of the Dalai lama". The hoisting of the PRC's national flag and singing of its national anthem in schools have been made mandatory under the drive. The Tibet Daily on 15 September 1994 announced that education in patriotism was to be given to primary and secondary schools in Tibet and that this would last three years and initially would focus on raising the PRC flag and singing the national anthem each Monday".65 This campaign targets the ideological reform of Tibetan students and is based on racial superiority and hatred. The campaign is therefore being conducted in violation of article 4 of CERD.
An anti-Dalai Lama campaign was launched in Tibet University . A BBC report66 on 11 November 1994 broadcast the CCP education policy in that :
"Tibet University is Tibet's highest educational institute. Over 90% of its students are Tibetans. To contentiously carry out the guidelines of the CCP Central Committees Third Work Conference and the sixth plenary session of the fourth Autonomous regional Party Committee, University party committee members give top priority to patriotic education while conducting ideological and political education among students. This year the university enhanced patriotic education among students and organised the study of "outlines on education in patriotism". From 6th October to 24th November, the University propaganda department held a series of "forums on patriotism" and invited Comrade Huang Yesheng from the propaganda department of the autonomous regional party committee present a report entitled "see clearly the true colour of the Dalai clique, oppose separatism and safeguard the unification of the motherland" to help students recognise the Dalai Cliques intention of splitting the motherland. The University's Propaganda Department will hold a contest to test students understanding of patriotism, appraise and select civilised units of patriotism, and launch the "month for reading patriotic books".
On 3 December Tibet daily published a party committee circular on implementing the program on patriotism. The circular stated that all should:
"Conscientiously study the program to enhance ideological understanding; grasp the contents of the education and emphasise fighting splittism, step up education in Tibet's sovereignty and human rights and the law on regional autonomy; make the program "down to earth" by raising the national flag, singing the national anthem and hanging the national portraits of prominent Chinese historical figures in schools". Schools in Tibet should be linked with those on Beijing and youth organisations should be involved in making speeches, staging performances, writing bulletin boards and giving lectures on patriotism and "bring into play the role of the family" in youth education. The media should publicise China's "glorious traditions and brilliant culture" and publicise those who safeguard the unity of nationalities. This should be done in a practical way."67
G. Women's Rights Violated
Introduction
China has ratified the Convention of the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (1979) and is therefore bound by it. The Convention aims to eliminate the discrimination against all women to ensure that they enjoy equality in all spheres of life.68 China ratified this convention on 4 November 1980. In compliance with its obligations, the Chinese Constitution claims that the rights of women against discrimination are protected69.
On 27 October 1994 the Mother and Child Health law was passed by the National People's Congress to take effect from June 1995. This law delegates discretionary power to Chinese officials who can prevent marriages and births if either of the parents to the marriage is suffering from a mental or hereditary disease which is serious and likely to affect others. The aim of the regulations is to ensure that couples that procreate will have healthy babies. If there is a risk of the couple producing deformed or unhealthy babies they must divorce. This law also dictates that the abortion of foetuses, identified as mentally or physically handicapped, as well as abortions for and/or sterilisation or women suffering from mental instability, hereditary or infectious diseases.
1. Overview of the Situation in 1994
Tibetan women continued to be the victims of a harsh and discriminatory birth control policy being implemented in Tibet.70 Tibetan women also continued to suffer arbitrary arrest and detentions as a result of their exercising their rights to freedom of expression and religion. 1994 also highlighted the human rights abuses of the girl child, as girl children were detained and in a few reported cases, died as a result of maltreatment in Chinese prisons.
2. Birth Control in Tibet.
TIN conducted a birth control survey and published its report in 199471. TIN reported the following:
"The 14 Tibetans, including Doctors and rural women consulted for this survey concurred in finding that a very considerable element of force is applied to women particularly in villages, through the mechanism of fines and administrative sanctions, Particularly where the women are poor, these threats of fines constitute actual force. The women say that they thus had no option but to agree to undergo an abortion or sterilisation operation. The use of constructive force is important for two reasons. Firstly, in many cases, particularly in Ganze, a Tibetan "prefecture" in Sichuan province known to Tibetans as Kanze, it exceeds the written requirements of the law. The law does not specifically demand abortions or the use of surgical controls, confining its formal coercions to fines and other punishments. But the effect of the law in practice is that abortions are compulsory, except where the women or their husbands are wealthy enough to pay the fines. It is thus significant that the amount of the fines has been raised enormously in recent years particularly in areas where the laws are more subtly worded: in Ganze there are reports of fines reaching 7,000 yuan in some cases, about 5 years income for an urban employee and about 8 years income for an average peasant. Areas such as the TAR with more aggressive laws have lower fines. The effect in either case is the same and poorer people are under an effective obligation to submit to surgical controls if they exceed the allowed number of children". "Secondly, the use of fines as a way to force women to accept abortions is a discriminatory weapon, since generally only the poor are susceptible to this. (The Ganze regualtions are, unusually, pegged to income, but high income families ate still less likely to have experienced the fines as co-ercion). In Tibetan communities, it seems generally the case, that the Tibetans are poorer than the Chinese migrants or residents; in addition Chinese migrants and residents are reportedly more able to use contacts with officials, who are often Chinese, to circumvent regulations. The thresholds at which controls are applied are lower for Chinese than for Tibetans, but in effect, once applied, it seems from these accounts harder for Tibetan women to avoid the demands. Thus the birth control policy seems in effect, though not necessarily in intention, to be discriminatory and to be applied in a way that constitutes force among Tibetans more than among Chinese in the same communities. This would be true also of parallel situations in Chinese villages in China, where in terms of abortions, fines would be co-ercive to the poor but not to the rich".72
An interview conducted in 1994 of a new arrival served to highlight the harshness of the fine system on women. X (a Tibetan woman who wishes to remain anonymous), at the time of the interview, had just arrived from Tibet. X underwent sterilisation after giving birth to her third child. She left Tibet with her husband after being fined for the third child which she couldn't afford. In the interview she said:
"When the baby [third] was due I went home. About one month after the delivery the officials came to my house again and threatened that they would take away all our possessions and arrest my husband. When we said we would pay the annual fine of 500 yuan until the child was 15 years old, they didn't take our possessions, nor did they arrest my husband".73
3. The Medical Abuse of Pregnant Women.
There were several reports in 1994 relating to the medical abuse of pregnant women. One such report was received from the family of Pasang, in Tibet. In August 1994, Pasang, 23 years old, went to the People's hospital in Lhasa to give birth to her child. She was informed that delivery was impossible without surgery because the child was too big and she was too weak. Shortly after the surgery, she died of hypertension. When the family instructed the "Tobden" (traditional Tibetan men who dispose of dead bodies) to find out the cause of death, the report found that the heart, liver and womb of the deceased were missing. On hearing this, Pasang's family took the matter to court. To date there has been no report on the judicial fate of their case.
4. Women Prisoners of Conscience.
Like other Tibetan prisoners of conscience in Tibet, Tibetan women are being arbitrarily arrested and detained for expressing their political opinions. A 1994 report by TIN stated that out of 255 political prisoners in Lhasa's Drapchi prison, 68 were women; compared to 1991 which held only 23 women prisoners. TIN also reported that the majority of these female prisoners were sexually abused via torture techniques and received no medical treatment for injuries suffered
On October 29, 1994 during a meeting in Beijing, the release of a Lhasa businesswomen, Damchoe Pemo in her mid twenties, was announced to European ambassadors. She was arrested on May 20, 1993 on suspicion of being a supporter of the independence movement. She was tortured for refusing to reveal the names of activists.
Also refer to the section titled "deaths in custody" for accounts of women who were reported to have died in custody in 1994.
5. Tibetan Girl Prisoners of Conscience Detained in Chinese Prisons in 1994.
7 Tibetan girls all under 18 years of age were held in Chinese prisons around Lhasa in 199474. All have been detained for taking part in independence activities and were novice nuns at the time of arrest.
Three girls, all under 18 were reportedly held in Gutsa in 1994. They are:
Gyatlsen Pelsang: , who was 13 at the time of her arrest on 14 June 1993. She was born in Trikhnag village in Medro Gyama and a novice from Gaur nunnery
Jampa Dedrol: was 15 at the time of her arrest on 14 June 1993. She was born in Thangya village and a novice from Michungri nunnery.
Tenzin Dekyong: was 16 at the time of her arrest on 13 March 1993. Born in Medro county and a novice from Michingri nunnery. According to some reports she was beaten at the time of her arrest and was taken to Gutsa.
Arrested and under 18 years old in 1994 but whereabouts unknown:
Pema Oeser: was 16 at the time of her arrest on 17 August 1993. A novice from nagar nunnery, Chegar, in Phenpo Lundrop county
Seldroen: was 17 at the time of her arrest on 14 June 1994 in Lhasa. Born in Phenpo Lundrop county, Seldroen was a novice from Shar Bumpa nunnery
Those held in Trisam detention centre:
Sherab Ngawang: was 12 years old at the time of her arrest on 3 February 1992. Born in Thompogang viallge in Medro Gungkar, a novice from Michungri nunnery. She was taken to Gutsa detention centre, where she stayed for at least 2 months awaiting trial and is reported to have been beaten during detention
Arrested and held in Drapchi prison:
Kunchok Tsomo: 15 years old at the time of her arrest on 17 June 1992 during a peaceful demonstration in Lhasa. A novice from Garu nunnery she was born in Gyama, Medro Gongkar.
H. The Rights of the Child Violated
Introduction
The PRC signed the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) on 29 August 1990 and ratified it on 2 March 1992. Article 37(a)75 of the CRC protects the rights of the child against torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment and defines a child as below 18 years of age. Article 37(b)76 also protects the rights of the child against arbitrary arrest and detention and long periods of detention. Chinese law has also been passed to protect the rights of the child. Article 52 of the Law on the Protection of Minors (1991) provides that:<>
"Agents of the legal administration who infringe the regulations of surveillance in custody, who commit corporal punishment and ill-treatment against juveniles shall bear criminal responsibility in accordance with Article 189 of the Criminal Law".
1. Young Prisoners of Conscience Detained in Chinese Prisons in Tibet.
Amnesty International expressed its concern, in a report published in May, on the human rights situation in Tibet77, that some of the prisoners of conscience that were being kept in detention in 1994 were under the age of 18 at the time of the arrest. In it's report it expressed its concern:
"...at reports that juvenile detainees in Tibet have been ill-treated in detention and some subjected to conditions of detention that may amount to cruel or degrading treatment".78
At least thirty four male and eleven female Tibetan political prisoners who were reportedly still being held in detention in 1994 were under the age of eighteen at the time of arrest. The two youngest prisoners were aged twelve years at the time of arrest. In December 1994 , twenty six of them were still under the age of eighteen years, including seven girls, of which thirteen were under the age of sixteen years. The detention of forty five of the prisoners under the age of eighteen, at the time of arrest, was confirmed by the Chinese government in June 1994 in the list of fifty six detainees handed to the U.S State department.79 One such child was Sherab Ngawang (she died in February 1995). At the time of her arrest she was twelve years old ( see Amnesty International's May 1995 report on China's Human Rights violations in Tibet for a description of each of these children detained in 1994 ).
2. The Rights of Tibetan Children to Universal and Free Education:
Education in Tibet is neither free nor universally available. According to UNICEF, Tibet has an illiteracy rate of 73 percent as against 31 percent in China.
Many minors continued to escape across the Himalayas in 1994 in search of a decent education in-exile. The UNHCR office in Kathmandu registered six hundred and seventy children under 18 years of age who arrived unaccompanied over the mountains to Nepal in 1994. These children are lucky; many such minors have been reported missing along the escape route. During their arduous journey many children have suffered frostbite, others have drowned while trying to negotiate dangerous rivers along the escape route.
In order to reverse the tide of escaping Tibetan children, the Chinese authorities in Lhasa issued orders in August 1994, to Tibetan government officials and employees, instructing them to recall their children to Tibet. Warnings were issued that those who failed to obey the order would be demoted or possibly expelled from their jobs, that their promotions and pay increments would be withheld and cadres would be expelled from the party ( refer to the section on "the right to education" for more details).
The Department of Security (CTA) in Dharamsala, India, recorded the removal of approximately thirty five children from Tibetan schools in India, around the time of the order, by parents who came from Tibet. Reports were also received from Tibet that many young Tibetans who were removed from schools in India and who had to return to Tibet under the Chinese order, were facing difficulties in gaining employment. Also, most of the young Tibetans who were working as tourist guides in Tibet, were told that they would not be required after the end of November (the end of the tourist season) because they would be replaced by one thousand Chinese tourist guides.
PART C - International Monitoring For 1994.
January
The Fourth UNPO General Assembly on 26th January, adopted a strongly worded resolution on the "situation in Chinese-occupied Tibet".
March
The World Parliamentarians Convention on Tibet was held in New Delhi from March 18-20 1994. Organised by the New Delhi based, All Party Indian Parliamentary Forum for Tibet at the Convention Center of Hamdard University. The conference aimed to pave the way for dialogue between the Dalai Lama and Chinese officials.80 The outcome was a statement on Tibetan Freedom & The New Delhi Action Plan for Tibet, which included strategies for actions by parliamentarians.
A Tibet resolution was adopted by the Belgian House of Representatives in its third session of the 48th Legislature on March 29, 1994. The resolution requested the Belgian government to exercise its pressure on the Chinese authorities to stop the violation of human rights and the policy of population transfer and also to engage in negotiations with His Holiness the Dalai Lama.81
April
A Lithuanian organisation, the Lithuanian Public organisation, passed a resolution on April 7, 1994, supporting the initiatives of the Lithuanian Parliamentary support group to organise a World Parliamentary Convention on Tibet in Lithuania in 1995. It further requested the Lithuanian Parliament to pass a resolution on the independence of Tibet.82
Over sixty representatives of Tibet Support Groups (TSG) from St. Petersburg to Dublin met near Oslo, Norway in late April for Europe's yearly Tibet Support group meeting. This years gathering included, for the first time, many delegations from Eastern Europe. "Each of the Western European support groups also agreed to "adopt" an Eastern European partner to help with the exchange of ideas and resources. Some of the more remote representatives came from St. Petersburg, Latvia, Poland, Bulgaria, Hungary and Finland."83
The Chinese government defied critics of its human rights record for the fourth year running by blocking a resolution condemning its human rights record in China and Tibet at the United Nations Human Rights Commission. China and its allies won a procedural move by twenty votes to sixteen ruling that "no action" should be taken on the resolution. Seventeen countries abstained. There was little attempt to justify the "no action" ruling, which was largely a political device, with China arguing that the human rights criticism was an "attack" on its internal affairs".84 April/May 1994 issue.
The European Parliament gave a ringing condemnation of China's human rights abuses. A thirty three item resolution was passed unanimously. 85April/May 1994
For the first time ever, in April, a Congressional staff delegation travelled to Tibet unaccompanied by Chinese authorities. After an official request for a Senate Foreign Relations Committee staff delegation to Tibet was denied by the Chinese government, a small staff delegation spent ten days in Tibet and Nepal, on Tourist visas investigating current conditions for the Tibetan people."86
May
On May 26, 1994 President Clinton abandoned his policy of using China's MFN status trading status as a leverage to promote the protection of Tibet's religious and cultural heritage, as well as human rights in China. Instead he chose to renew China's trading privileges and offer a slap on the wrist by sanctioning imports into the U.S of Chinese-made guns and ammunition".87
A Polish Parliamentary Forum for Tibet was formed with eighteen members belonging to both the chambers of parliament. The forum was officially registered in the Polish Parliament on May 30, 1994, according to a report from representative Chope Paljor Tsering in Budapest. The forum will raise the Tibetan issue in Poland and promote constructive dialogue between Dharamsala and Beijing".88
The Sami Parliament at it's plenary session of 25th-27th May, 1994 unanimously passed a resolution supporting the basic rights of Tibetan people to self-determination and recognising Tibet as an illegal occupation.
June
The House of Representatives of the Australian Parliament had a lengthy discussion on the Tibetan issue on June 6, 1994 six MP's spoke in detail about the current situation in Tibet, and about the statement of the World Parliamentarians Convention on Tibet held in New Delhi in March 1994. Members called upon the Australian Government to play a more active role on the Tibet issue."89
The Voice of America reported on June 7 that the European Union said that it supported Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, in his efforts to negotiate with China's government. John Fraser in Brussels reported that senior EU officials promised their support on the Thursday during talks with the Dalai Lama90
September
In September 1994 an historic meeting took place in London. Seven individuals from different parts of the world gathered to meet His Holiness the Dalai Lama, who was on a visit to U.K and to talk about one common issue: their recollection of the days spent in Tibet. After their meeting they came out with a press statement declaring that Tibet was independent before Chinese occupation. 91
The national conference of the ruling Labour Party of Australia on September 26, 1994 passed a resolution condemning the, "widespread human rights abuses occurring in Tibet" and called for earnest negotiations between the government of the People's Republic of China and the Tibetan Government-in exile on the future status of Tibet". The conference took place in Hobart, Tasmania. The resolution will now become labour party policy.92
October
In October, European Diplomats visiting Lhasa, raised the case of Gyaltsen Kelsang who was the tenth known political prisoner since 1987 to have died in custody and also the case of the fourteen other Garu nuns with the vice-chairman of the Tibet Autonomous region. The vice-chairman told diplomats that the nuns had been convicted of "separatist activities".
In October 1994, the report of a Swedish Foreign Ministry human rights mission, which visited Tibet in March 1994, was published. It outlined the human rights situation in Tibet.
The Allied Committee (Germany), an organisation founded in 1985 to highlight the Human rights situation in Eastern Turkestan, Inner Mongolia and Tibet held its first major conference in New York City at Columbia University on 16 October to highlight the gross human rights violations stemming from China's continued occupation of these countries. The executive members of the allied committee released open letters addressed to President Clinton, the Chinese president Jiang Zemin and the UN General Secretary, urging them to solve the issues relating to Eastern Turkestan, Inner Mongolia and Tibet peacefully and to the mutual satisfaction of all parties concerned."93
November
President Clinton met with the Chinese President Jiang Zemin for the second time during the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings which started on November 14 in Indonesia".94 President Clintons meeting with Jiang Zemin was the culmination of a six month period of extensive contact between the U.S and China and was part of the Administrations efforts to broaden and strengthen ties with China in the aftermath of the Presidents decision to de-link human rights and MFN.95
The UN Special Rapporteur on Religious Intolerance visited Tibet (TAR) in November. He released his report this year which stated that freedom to practice religion was far from satisfactory.
The Australian Senate passed a resolution on Tibet in November 1994. The resolution urged the Chinese government to enter into negotiations on the future status of Tibet.
December
At the 49th session of the UN General Assembly (September-December) the governments of the European union, Sweden, Canada and the U.S of America made strong references to the situation in Tibet in their statements before the third committee which deals with social, humanitarian and cultural issues before the general assembly. The members expressed serious concern on the situation in Tibet as a result of Chinese population transfer policy.96
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Last updated: 12-Aug-97