New report challenges Xi Jinping to address Tibet crisis

October 3: Tibet activists launched a new report today directed at the Chinese Communist Party’s leader-in-waiting Xi Jinping, challenging him to take “immediate steps towards a just and lasting resolution to the occupation of Tibet, or face greater international condemnation and domestic instability.” The report titled ‘Xi Jinping's Tibet Challenge: 60 Years of Failed Policies in Tibet’ was launched simultaneously from London, New York, Washington, and Sydney via an online press conference. The report exposes “decades of China’s failed policies” in Tibet, holding them as the “direct cause” of the ongoing wave of self-immolation protests in which at least 52 Tibetans have set themselves on fire, since 2009, demanding freedom and the return of the Dalai Lama from exile. Co-authors of the report, the International Tibet Network, Students for a Free Tibet, and the Australia Tibet Council pointed out that human rights in Tibet are “routinely abused” and Tibetans have become marginalised politically, socially and economically. Xi is slated to replace Hu Jintao as general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party at its upcoming 18th National Congress on November 8 in Beijing. “Xi Jinping is set to inherit a wide array of challenges but the occupation of Tibet poses one of the greatest threats to China’s global standing and long-term stability,” said Tenzin Jigme of the International Tibet Network. Addressing the press conference, Tenzin Dorjee of SFT noted that for Xi, Tibet is his “biggest challenge” and a litmus test set to define his legacy as a leader. “The challenge before Xi is to take the path of his father, a revolutionary hero and bring about a peaceful resolution for Tibet, or be remembered as a failed leader like Hu Jintao,” Dorjee said. “China’s legitimacy to rule Tibet has never been weaker, and Tibetan resistance to occupation has never been stronger.” The report further outlines China’s attempts to maintain their occupation of Tibet through “Three Pillars of Coercive Control: Military Occupation, Colonial Rule, and Fear and Intimidation,” and contextualizes the growing Tibetan resistance at a time when China faces “great political change and uncertainty.” “Tibetans are moving beyond fear, and by engaging in acts of outright defiance and embracing new forms of resistance they ultimately have the power to bring down China’s pillars of coercive control in Tibet,” said Kyinzom Dhongdue of ATC. “Xi must resolve the Tibet issue swiftly and peacefully or risk creating an even greater crisis of geopolitical significance.” Tibet’s elected leader, Sikyong Dr Lobsang Sangay recently told reporters at the end of special meeting called to discuss the crisis in Tibet that Tibetans “do not tolerate China’s present policies and the continued occupation of Tibet.” “We will do whatever we can to support our brothers and sisters in Tibet and we squarely blame the present tragedy in Tibet on the hard-line policies of the Chinese government,” Sikyong Sangay had said.