Tibet Bureau Geneva calls upon China to address underlying grievances of Tibetans at UN Forum

Kalden Tsomo, UN Advocacy Officer, told the UN Forum on minority issues that Tibetan people are facing the consequences of the imposition of social structural and demographic change by China.

"Lack of opportunity to acquire knowledge on Tibetan history, culture and traditions; and lack of employment opportunities in Tibet have led to a cycle of conflicts and protests, including self-immolation protests by over 155 Tibetans in Tibet," Central Tibetan Administration quoted Tsomo as saying. The UN Forum on minority issues was convened in hybrid format from December 2-3. The forum focused on the root causes of contemporary conflicts involving minorities, legal and institutional frameworks.

Underlining the Chinese authorities' closure of all remaining Tibetan medium schools, Tsomo said that informal Tibetan language classes have also been closed. She also highlighted the recent demolition of the Drago Monastery school in the Kardze Tibetan area. Stating that job markets are increasingly dominated by a state-sponsored influx of Chinese into Tibetan areas, Tsomo said that it has left local Tibetan college graduates with no job prospects.

She also underlined the survival of Tibetan people with their culture, language and identity which are under severe threat amid Beijing's ever-growing push to "Sinicize" every aspect of Tibetan people's way of life, according to the Central Tibetan Administration.