TRIN-GYI-PHO-NYA, Vol. 3, No. 3
By Carole Samdup*
In a new and important book entitled, “State Growth and Social Exclusion in Tibet: Challenges of Recent Economic Growth”, (University of Hawaii Press, available on amazon.com), development economist Andrew Martin Fischer debunks the myth that economic growth will automatically reduce poverty. Through a fascinating study of statistics and experiences in Tibet, based on a rigorous analysis of Chinese data, Fischer illustrates how poverty and exclusion are actually increasing with Tibet’s growing economy. The book will be of keen interest for development agencies eager embrace China’s “Go West” campaign as well as for advocates promoting genuine autonomy for the Tibetan people.
Fischer is able to isolate the Tibetan experience within Chinese statistics, not because the statistics themselves are disaggregated along ethnic lines, but because of three primary observations: Tibetans account for 90% of the population in the Tibet Autonomous Region; 85% of Tibetans live in rural areas, and; the rural areas themselves are approximately 97.5% Tibetan. This means that rural surveys in the TAR can be assumed to describe the specific experience of Tibetans and also of most Tibetans in the TAR. It also means that they serve as a commentary on the true value of current Tibetan autonomy.
Ever since his ground-breaking essay Poverty by Design: the Economics of Discrimination in Tibet (Canada Tibet Committee, 2002) Fischer has promoted the view that development policies in China’s western regions are essentially exclusionary. He reaches his conclusion through the careful compilation of statistical data collected entirely from Chinese sources and analysed through a series of charts and graphs. Fischer’s conclusions are informed by his own personal experiences in Tibet which included extensive interviews with farmers, nomads, urban entrepreneurs, government officials, teachers, students and scholars as well as with representatives of international non-governmental groups operating on the ground in Tibet.
Fischer observes that strategies used to promote local participation and ownership within development processes in the rest of China, are simply ignored in Tibetan areas. To illustrate, he points to the overwhelming role of the state in Tibet’s economy. He explains also how subsidies are used to advantage urban centres, where almost all Chinese migrants settle, at the expense of local Tibetans and Tibetan rural to urban migrants. Fischer points to declining incomes in rural areas while noting that the application of reform measures required under World Trade Organization rules have been skewed to disadvantage Tibetan farmers who are far less prepared for off-farm options. Fischer’s compilation of data reveals that even as Tibetan incomes decrease and despite the overwhelming role of the state in Tibet’s economy, provision of social services such as healthcare and education is far less in Tibet than in the rest of China.
Fischer’s conclusion that poverty among Tibetans is actually a “dynamic integral to the very process of modernization within Tibetan areas” is coupled with the observation that the nature of the development process itself is “essentially determined by the state”. Given that the state in this case refers to the central government and not to the regional administration, this observation has implications for development agencies that negotiate their bilateral assistance programs for Tibet primarily in Beijing.
Although suggestions for alternate approaches could have been more specific (and one hopes they will be the topic of his next book) Fischer does offer broad recommendations for the promotion of Tibetan interests through development assistance. First, he suggests massive expansion of social services, primarily education and health care, to replace large-scale infrastructure construction as the driver of subsidized growth. Secondly, he emphasizes the “Tibetan-ization” of development in Tibetan regions. Beyond simply involving Tibetans at the individual project level, this would require the prioritization of Tibetans within decision-making processes at the programming level as well as strategies to encourage Tibetan ownership of assets and businesses, and preferential treatment in contracting and employment policies.
This book is a singularly valuable resource for advocates seeking to influence development policy and promote increased autonomy in Tibet. Written in a style at once accessible to the general public while also rigorous in methodology, State Growth and Social Exclusion in Tibet is a must-read and without doubt, a piece of work that will encourage new directions in research about Tibet.
*Carole Samdup is a program officer at Montreal-based Rights & Democracy and a founding member of the Canada Tibet Committee. She can be contacted via e-mail at csamdup@ichrdd.ca
