Tibet

The Dalai Lama said that a "democratic Tibet" may not need a Dalai Lama, according to a June 20 report in the Hindustan Times, a major Indian daily newspaper. The Tibetan religious leader explained that if he dies in exile "there will be another Dalai Lama," but "if we cease to be a refugee community and can live in democratic Tibet, then I don't think there should be a successor to me after I die."

The Dalai Lama's premise is that if the political role historically filled by the Dalai Lama can be replaced by a democratically elected Tibetan leader, there would be no further need for the position. But most Tibetans revere the Dalai Lama as their religious leader and as a political figure, and when he speaks about the end of the line of Dalai Lamas, it raises concern in the Tibetan community.

Hu Chunhua, a Communist Party cadre who held positions in the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) throughout the period of intensified repression of Tibetan culture and religion that began in the late 1980s, has been promoted to Executive Secretary of the TAR Party Committee, according to a report by Ta Kung Pao. When China's current President Hu Jintao was the TAR Party Secretary (1988-92), and while Lhasa was under martial law (March 1989-April 1990), Hu Chunhua's TAR portfolio included Deputy Secretary of the China Communist Youth League (CYL).

The Central Propaganda Department praised 18 model individuals and work units for "strengthening nationality unity" in a recently published "Ode to Progress in Minority Nationality Unity." The State Ethnic Affairs Commission (SEAC) Web site highlights the new work, which reflects a national campaign to "intensify propaganda on unity" among China's 56 ethnic nationalities.

Chinese authorities announced on May 13 that construction of the railroad bridge across the "Lhasa River" at Lhasa is complete, according to a Xinhua report. Tibetans know the river as the Kyichu. Many Tibetans speaking privately have expressed grave concern that the completion of the railroad could result in a transformation of the population mix.

Lodi Gyaltsen Gyari, the Special Envoy of the Dalai Lama, told the Voice of America (VOA) in a May 4 interview that he and fellow Envoy Kelsang Gyaltsen would make their fourth trip to China "soon." In the VOA interview, Gyari said, "Everything is decided except the timing of the visit, and we are in touch with concerned Chinese leadership." He noted that the Tibet issue is "extremely complex" and would not be resolved quickly.

Gyari said that the Tibetan government-in-exile, based in the Indian city of Dharamsala, had called for Tibetans living in India to refrain from staging anti-Chinese demonstrations during Premier Wen Jiabao's state visit to India from April 9-12, 2005. The gesture should not be construed as appeasement, Gyari said, since it is in the best interests of Tibetans to create an atmosphere conducive to Sino-Tibetan dialogue.

The China Development and Research Center reported on May 27 that Tibetan farmers and herders in the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) enjoy good health, a life expectancy that has doubled since the 1950s, and free medical care, according to a Xinhua story.

Tibetan farmers and herdsmen who live in the TAR have told analysts that medical care is not free. In off-the-record interviews, they claim that rural Tibetans often are unable to afford medicine or treatment. Some accounts allege that medical care facilities may demand substantial cash deposits before treatment, forcing sick or injured Tibetans to forego treatment.

The U.S. State Department submitted the third annual "Report on Tibet Negotiations" to Congress in April 2005, in accordance with a law enacted in 2002. The report summarizes U.S. policy on Tibet and details steps that the White House and State Department have taken to encourage Chinese officials to "enter into a dialogue with the Dalai Lama or his representatives leading to a negotiated agreement on Tibet."

Jin Shixun, Deputy Director of the Tibet Development and Reform Commission, announced April 6 that the government plans to open a copper mine tapping China's largest proven reserve near Yulong township in Jiangda (Jomda) county in the northeastern tip of the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR). The location of the mine in Yulong township has proven reserves of 6.5 million tons, according to a Xinhua report on April 7, 2005. Deputy Director Jin said that construction is scheduled to commence in September 2005, with production starting within three years.