(TibetanReview.net, Jul09’26) – China has reacted angrily to a statement signed by a total of 51 lawmakers of Estonia’s unicameral parliament, the Riigikogu, on Jul 6, which called Tibet an illegally occupied territory and urged it to repeal its Ethic Unity and Progress Promotion Law. The statement had condemned the law as a measure to coercively assimilate Tibetans and other ethnic groups in the People’s Republic of China despite what its title says.
China rejected the allegation, claiming the law safeguards the right of all ethnic groups, with the spokesperson of its Embassy in Estonia claiming the statement “severely distorts the facts, blatantly supports the ‘Tibetan independence’ forces, infringes upon China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and grossly interferes in China’s internal affair.”
“The Chinese government attaches high importance to preserving ethnic minority cultures, and lawfully safeguards the right of all ethnic groups to use and develop their own spoken and written languages,” claimed the Chinese embassy statement.
The law replaces the ethnic minorities’ mother tongue with Mandarin as the language for education and official usage, with punishments prescribed for those accused of violating these mandates. People living outside the country could also be punished if accused of violating this law. This is just one, albeit one of the most significant, provision of the new law, which came into force on Jul 1.
“Xizang is an integral part of China’s territory,” the embassy spokesperson said, using the Sinicized name for Tibet.
Despite what China claims, the law in strongly opposed and condemned by people belonging to the affected communities who are in a position to do so. It has also been criticized in the democratic world, including in the United Nations, with calls on Beijing to repeal it in order to live up to its own national laws and international obligations.