Dharamshala (Himachal Pradesh) [India], June 5 (ANI): The human rights situation in Tibet continued to worsen in 2025 as Chinese authorities intensified efforts to strengthen political and ideological control over the region, according to two new reports released by the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD), as reported by Phayul.
According to Phayul, at a press conference in Dharamshala, TCHRD launched its Annual Report on the Human Rights Situation in Tibet 2025 and the Religious Freedom Report (2012-2025), saying China’s policies increasingly threaten Tibetan cultural, religious and civil freedoms. TCHRD Executive Director Tenzin Dawa described the past year as one marked by heightened state repression and expanding restrictions on fundamental rights. One of the key concerns highlighted in the report is the gradual erosion of the Tibetan language and identity through education policies that prioritise Mandarin Chinese.
Dawa noted that China’s recently introduced Preschool Education Law broadens the use of Putonghua in early education, further sidelining Tibetan-language instruction. The policy forms part of a wider strategy that critics say undermines the transmission of Tibetan culture and heritage to future generations.
The report also documented growing restrictions on peaceful assembly. Tibetans protesting mining projects and large-scale infrastructure developments have allegedly faced arrests, intimidation, surveillance and other punitive measures. Entire communities have reportedly been subjected to collective punishment for opposing projects viewed as environmentally harmful.
Another major concern raised by TCHRD is China’s increasing use of transnational repression against Tibetan activists and religious figures living abroad. Among the cases cited was the reported extrajudicial killing of Tibetan religious leader Tulku Hungkar Dorje in Vietnam after his detention during an operation allegedly involving both Chinese and Vietnamese authorities, as highlighted by Phayul.
The Religious Freedom Report further details the tightening of state control over Tibetan Buddhism. Researcher Dawa Tashi said revised regulations governing Tibetan Buddhist monasteries, introduced in late 2024 and enforced from January 2025, require religious institutions and monastics to support Chinese Communist Party leadership and advance the government’s policy of “Sinicisation” of religion, as reported by Phayul. (ANI)
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