By Kalsang Rinchen
Dharamsala, August 21 – China recently concluded a two – day meeting of Public Security Bureaus of the ethnic Tibetan areas under the “Tibet Autonomous Region” and four other provinces, reported Chinatibetnews.com.
The meeting held in the Tibetan capital Lhasa on 18 and 19 August was called to assess the results and experiences of “upholding public security, struggle against the current separatist movement, and identified current challenges facing stability in Tibetan areas.”
The Tibetan Center for Human Rights and Democracy said China intensified its control on Tibetans following the protests throughout Tibet in 2008. China launched “Strike Hard” campaign last year to what the Dharamsala based rights group calls “quell political dissent through mass detention and arrests.” Lhasa PSB rounded up 5766 suspects within three days of the launch of “Strike Hard”.
The rights group also said Lhasa City government has issued a notice requiring all visitors staying up to a month in the capital to apply for a temporary stay permit from the PSB office.
Officials from various PSB offices discussed future action plans “to step up fight against separatists; build bodies to protect social security; increase border security; and improve communication infrastructure, uniform and skills of the public security bureaus”.
The United Front Work Department of the Party’s Central Committee – the body tasked specifically to handle the Sino – Tibet talks also held a meeting on 14 and 15 August in Shigatse where heads of monastic institutions and local United Front officials in the “TAR” and Tibetan areas in four other provinces gathered for the meeting that exiles say was held to tighten control over religious institutions in Tibetan areas.
“Competent Tibetan Buddhist monks and nuns who are politically reliable, extraordinarily learned and widely respected should be selected to monastery management committees through thorough democratic consultation,” said Du Qinglin, head of the United Front Work Department and vice-chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference.
The two top level conferences are most likely follow up meetings to the Fifth Work Forum on Tibet conducted in January 2010 to implement measures to bring restive Tibet under control, said TCHRD.
