DHARAMSHALA: Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy with the Human Rights Law Network based in New Delhi launched a book ‘Imposing Modernity with Chinese Characteristics: The fate of Tibetan civilisation’ at Gangchen Kyishong, Dharamsala on 4 July.

In its executive summary the books says, “A substantial section in this report is dedicated to the unmasking of  ‘Development in Tibet’ and shows how ‘Development’ has a definite strategy and scheme aimed at disassociating Tibetan population from its identity, value spectrum, history and other cultural affiliations like language and literature, with the net effect of engineering ‘Death of a Nation’.”

The researchers of the book have interviewed newly arrived refugees from Tibet explaining why there is such a massive retaliation  and opposition towards the developments and why it failed to persuade Tibetans to remain within China.

Mr Thubten Samphel, Information Secretary of the Department of Information and International Relations, on releasing the book said, “This book is very important as it gives evidence of what His Holiness the Dalai Lama always says ‘whether intentionally or unintentionally cultural genocide is taking place in Tibet.”

Mr Samphel said, “The 10th Panchen Lama had already written a 70,000 character petition on the cultural genocide in Tibet. In his petition, the late Panchen Lama wrote that Buddhism had no future in Tibet”.

Mr Anant Kumar Asthana, Representative of Human Rights Law Network said, “The content of the book is based on enquiry, questioning whether the cultural genocide in Tibet has any basis or if it is just a mere accusation”.

Mr Asthana further commented, “…We have tried to present what it means for Tibetans to live with Chinese developments and we have tried to examine situations happening inside Tibet.”

“What is happening in Tibet is that Tibetan identity is being erased. So the human being – the person remains but his history and language is destroyed. All his cultural affiliation from the past are destroyed. Gradually erasing a complete identity until a person has no more connection to their history, thereby creating new a man”,  Mr Asthana added.

Mr Asthana said, “There is a magazine called Front Line which came up with an issue talking about developments in Tibet and how Tibetans would benefit if they came to accept the Chinese government”.  In commenting on the perspective given through the magazine, Mr Asthana said that it is all one sided description of what is happening in Tibet”.

He said, this book quotes people who are actually suffering those developments and this report is an effort to update on cultural genocide taking place in Tibet for long.