Briefing organised for EU policymakers on China’s environmental policy in Tibet[Tuesday, 5 April 2011, 9:15 a.m.]

From left : Mr Richard Kovacs, Parliamentary assistant, Mr Lafitte, MEP Thomas Mann & MEP Csaba Sogor at EP, 30 March 2011.

BRUSSELS:
The Office of Tibet in Brussels jointly with ICT organised from the 30
March to 4 April, a series of briefings for the Members of the European
Parliament, Officials from the European Commission, European Economic
& Social Committee, Members of the Belgian Federal and Flemish
Parliament and the Board members of the Belgium based Tibet support
groups to draw their attention on the impacts of China’s environmental
policies on the Tibetan plateau and its repercussions on the lives of
the billions of people across South-East Asia.Mr Gabriel
Lafitte, a prominent Australian public policy analyst who has carried
out extensive research on the ecological impact of China’s policy on
the Tibetan plateau whilst on his way to other European capitals was
invited to Brussels to brief the EU & local government officials.During
his various meetings, Mr Lafitte, put the spotlight on the forced
displacement en masse of Tibetan nomads to permanent structures,
non-regulated mining of minerals, building of hydro-electric power dams
on the Tibetan rivers by the Chinese authorities and its long term
impacts not only on the Tibetan plateau but across South-East Asia.“The
livelihood of roughly 2.5 million nomads and the very existence of a
9000 year old mobile civilisation on the Tibetan plateau is being put
in peril by this large scale policy of the Chinese government” said Mr.
Lafitte.Mr Lafitte also put forward some very concrete
suggestions on how and what EU could do to help Tibet. The full text of
the document is available on www.rukor.org.After
the successful meetings in Brussels on the afternoon of 4 April, Mr
Lafitte departed immediately for London where he is scheduled to attend
more meetings and conferences.–Report filed by Rigzin Choedon Genkhang, Bureau du Tibet, Brussels