(TibetanReview.net, Oct25’24) –Chinese authorities have been confiscating the cell phones of Tibetan Buddhist monks in a historically Tibetan area of Sichuan province, accusing them of having leaked news about the recent forced closure of monastic schools there, reported the Tibetan service of rfa.org Oct 24, citing two sources with knowledge of the situation.
China recently ordered Kirti Monastery and Lhamo Kirti Monastery in the province’s Ngaba (or Ngawa, Chinese: Aba) prefecture to shut down their schools and enrol their novice monk-students in government-run schools under a programme to Sinicize them.
The order, issued in Jul 2024, was reported to have affected some 1,000 novice monks at Kirti Monastery in Ngaba county and 600 at Lhamo Kirti Monastery in Dzoge county.
The order is being implemented under China’s law that bans Tibetans from enrolling in monasteries at below 18 years of age. And only those adults who clear tests of patriotism and being compliant with Chinese laws are certified to enrol in monasteries.
China also considers any sharing of any information with people outside the country as leaking of state secrets. In several parts of Tibet, people have been banned from maintaining any kind of contact with people outside the country, including even family members.
Suspecting them of leaking news about the forced closing of these schools, authorities have been checking the monks’ cell phones since Oct 1. Those found to have done so had their phones confiscated, the report cited the sources as saying without disclosing their identity due to safety concerns.
Chinese authorities were stated to be holding frequent meetings with monastery managements to emphasize the need for the monks to study the government’s regulations for Buddhist monasteries, including the ban on “separatist activities”. Any activity aimed at preserving or promoting Tibetan language and culture is also considered separatist.
The authorities were stated to have made it clear that spreading information about the forced closure of the monastic school to the outside world was a serious issue.