-By Human Rights Watch, 14 April 2025
Have you ever phoned or emailed someone in another country? A friend, a relative, or maybe a work colleague?
It seems almost a silly question. In today’s hyperconnected world, where communications are incredibly inexpensive and easily available, these are things people do countless times a day without giving it a second thought.
If you’re Tibetan, however, you have to think about it very carefully. For years, China’s government has arrested people in Tibetan areas for politically motived phone and internet-related offenses.
Contacting people outside China, even relatives, is just one action that can get you into trouble with authorities. Another is having images or text on your phone the government doesn’t like – so-called “banned content.” Another is sharing material authorities frown on. It might even be just a funny video.
Such things – trivialities in much of the world – can lead to arrest, detention, and torture in Tibet under Chinese rule.
Tibetans have to keep these dangers in mind every time they touch their phone. This is because there, a mobile phone is essentially a government tracking device.
Now, people say this about mobile phones all over the world, and there’s some truth in it, generally speaking. But in Tibet, surveillance though your cell phone is next level.
Authorities use mass phone searches, and everyone is required to install mandatory phone apps with built-in government surveillance.
The full scale of arrests and prosecutions for these telecoms-related “crimes” is unknown. Chinese authorities do not disclose official data for political offenses. A new HRW report found more than 60, but this is surely just the tip of the iceberg.
Some of the cases give you an idea of just how draconian the situation is, especially around the wildly broad definition of “banned content.”
In many cases, those arrested for “banned content” have possessed or shared nothing more than references to Tibetan religious figures, like the exiled spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama.
In one case, a man was arrested for setting up a WeChat group celebrating the birthdays of 80-year-old Buddhist monks. The police said it was “illegal” to form such a chat group “without permission.”
Chinese authorities are making a mockery of Tibetans’ rights. They don’t allow Tibetans to freely express themselves nor access information. They are even taking away Tibetans’ basic right to stay in touch with their loved ones.
Global communications are expanding rapidly in most parts of the world. Being in touch with others has never been easier.
In China, things are heading in the opposite direction, as the government increasingly seeks to close off and control entire populations.
Read the original report on Human Rights Watch here.
