1. What are the main points of the Communist Party Policy on religious freedom?

Answer: Barring the communist cadres of the People's Republic of China, all citizens of China have the right to believe or not to believe in any religion they think is appropriate. They have the freedom to adhere to any religious faith. They also have right to relinquish their earlier belief in religion.

2. What is the policy laid down by the People's Government of Lhasa City regarding mass assemblies and demonstrations?

Answer: The Standing Committee of the Fifth "TAR" People's Congress in its tenth meeting held on 15 May 1990 amended PRC charter of the constitution on mass assemblies and demonstrations that now has 27 articles and provides directions for its implementation by Lhasa City.

Article Four says that no one has the right to act either through religious or any other practice that threatens the unity of the motherland, and to instigate protest demonstrations and establish organizations that destroy friendship among nationalities and harm social stability.

Article Five states that the main controller of demonstrations is the Lhasa City Public Security Bureau.

Article 17, states that if there is a public demonstration, the organizers of the demonstration should identify themselves to the city authorities and that the Public Security Bureau should be informed five days in advance, in writing, along with: organizer_s ration card and other certificates of rights, specifications of The march_s goals, a strategy regarding how the demonstration will be conducted, the posters and slogans to be used, the number of people expected, the brand and number of loudspeakers, the demonstrations' termini, its route, and the names of the organizers. Supplied with these facts, the Public Security Bureau will respond within five days. If permission is granted by the Public Security Bureau, demonstrators will not be permitted to use splittist slogans or posters.

3. What is a crime?

Answer: According to the second part of Article 10, a crime is described as: damaging a national property, harming the dictatorship of the proletariats, harming the socialist reconstruction, harming the rule of law and harming the rights of the people, and other social harm which is against the constitution of People's Republic of China.

4. What are the different punishments under penal law?

Answer: The different punishments under penal law are: detention, short imprisonment through hard labour, imprisonment, life imprisonment, and the death sentence. Ordinary punishments are cash fines, deprivation of political rights, and confiscation of properties.

5. What are the procedures regarding admission of monks and nuns to monasteries and nunneries?

Answer: The monasteries and nunneries should make inquires about the individual from the local Religious Bureau and the local Municipality. The candidate for admission should have a guarantee letter of good conduct from parents, teachers and spiritual teachers.

6. What do you need to do to become a nation-loving, religion- loving, and law abiding monk?

Answer: You need to respect the constitution of the nation, to preserve the unity of the motherland and to promote friendship among various nationalities.

7. What are the four hats the Dalai Lama wears, as described by comrade Li Ruihuan?

Answer: The four hats that the Dalai Lama wears as described by comrade Li Ruihuan are: promoter of Tibetan independence and a leader of a political group, the tool of anti-China international forces, the main cause of instability in Tibet, the main obstacle to the smooth establishment of Tibet's Buddhist tradition..

8. What are the main requirements of each religion as identified by Li Ruihuan?

Answer: The main requirements are: respect for the constitution of China, protect the interest of the people, promote friendship among nationalities, and preserve the unity of the motherland.

9. During the last anniversary of the TAR celebration, what was the slogan on the banner given by Jiang Zemin to all the monasteries of Lhasa?

Answer: The slogan on the banner was, "Patriotism, love for religion, and the promotion of friendship among nationalities."

10. What is the nature of the incident on May 6, in Ganden? What are your feelings on this?

Answer: The May 6 Ganden incident was sparked by an urgent meeting called by PSB and Lhasa City Religious Bureau officials with the leading members of Ganden monastery. The officials ordered them to pull down the photos of the Dalai Lama. The leaders of the monks expressed their inability to order the monks to do so and asked the officials to order the monks themselves. The officials interrupted the dialectical session and ordered them to pull down the photos of the Dalai Lama. The officials claimed that Sera and Drepung monks would follow the lead of the Ganden monks in complying with the order. The monks were aware that this was a lie ; they were further angered by an earlier Chinese deception where monks were duped into holding a grand tea offering for the Chinese appointed Panchen Lama. These provocations resulted in the beating of several of the officials, which in turn led to the arrest of 65 monks and a siege of the monastery by the Army. A number of officials remained in the monastery laying down strict norms and timings for the monks. The officials continued their _political re- education_, and told the monks to be: "country loving, to respect the rule of law, and be religion loving."

1 October 19996

Human Rights Desk
Department of Information and International Relations
Central Tibetan Administration
Gangchen Kyishong
Dharamsala 176 215
INDIA

[ Homepage ] [ HumanRights ]



This site is maintained and updated by The Office of Tibet, the official agency of His Holiness the Dalai Lama in London. This Web page may be linked to any other Web sites. Contents may not be altered.
Last updated: 12-Aug-97