China dismantling Tibet's cultural identity, eliminating organised dissent: Report

Beijing, Aug 27 (IANS) China has intensified a campaign of digital authoritarianism in Tibet since 2019, effectively severing ties of Tibetans from each other, their diaspora and the wider world. This has caused erosion of cultural identity, with technology being used to suppress faith, speech and dissent, a report detailed on Wednesday.

Chinese authorities have been enforcing internet shutdowns to have control in Tibetan regions, journalist Aritra Banerjee wrote in an opinion piece for the Tibetan Review. Authorities regularly cut connections during politically sensitive occasions like the March 10th Uprising of 1959, the Dalai Lama’s birthday and local protests. A blackout was enforced across the region during the Derge dam demonstrations in 2024, with police making use of digital forensics to track and arrest protesters.

"The Great Firewall of China blankets Tibet, blocking global platforms such as Google, WhatsApp, and YouTube while censoring all references to the Dalai Lama, independence, and human rights. More recently, Douyin, Kuaishou, and Bilibili imposed bans on Tibetan-language livestreams and videos. By 2023–2024, minority language content was routinely scrubbed, erasing digital expressions of culture and stripping Tibetans of livelihoods built around online platforms," wrote Banerjee.

Similar restrictions, the writer notes, were also imposed offline with the shutting down of Gangjong Sherig Norbu Lobling school in July 2024, after 30 years of operation. The closure was reflected online as Tibetan-language websites and cultural accounts were removed, leaving little trace behind. These shutdowns highlight China's dual strategy — suffocating cultural life in physical and digital domains, he states.

Tibetans can be arrested for sharing a photo, joining a chat group or sending a message abroad. At least 60 arrests have been documented for “politically motivated” phone and internet offences since 2021. Over 1,000 Tibetans were detained during the Drichu River protests of early 2024.

"China’s control is underpinned by an extensive surveillance ecosystem. Tibet is divided into “grid units,” each monitored by state security and AI-enabled CCTV with facial recognition, echoing Xinjiang’s notorious model. Citizens are coerced into installing the 'National Anti-Fraud Centre' app, which grants authorities sweeping access to contacts, GPS, call records, and biometric data," the Tibetan Review report mentions.

According to the expert, police carry out regular phone inspections, particularly in monasteries or public squares, seizing devices which have banned material. Residents in Tibet are encouraged to police each other and promised rewards of up to 100,000 RMB for sharing information regarding digital dissent

"The crackdown disproportionately targets monasteries, schools, and local resistance movements. In addition to school closures, monks and nuns face heightened scrutiny, with online religious activity punished as 'illegal dissemination'. Protests — such as those against dams on the Drichu River, threatening six monasteries — are swiftly quashed through internet shutdowns, mass arrests, and forensic tracing of shared images and videos. Digital repression has become an extension of physical policing, aimed at extinguishing both resistance and its memory," Banerjee wrote.

Activists living in Switzerland and other nations have also reported surveillance and intimidation by the Chinese officials, with families residing in Tibet facing threats for their relatives' political activities abroad. As a result, many exiles avoid contacting their families in Tibet as they fear reprisals.

"The purpose of these measures is clear: assimilation and Sinification. By controlling communication, Beijing seeks to sever Tibet’s ties with its diaspora, dismantle cultural identity, and eliminate the potential for organised dissent. Tibet functions as both a frontier and a laboratory — where the Chinese Communist Party perfects repressive technologies later rolled out in Xinjiang and potentially exported abroad," the writer emphasised.

--IANS

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