(TibetanReview.net, May29’24) — The emotional pains of being forced to leave his monastery and join a government-run school instead, with the imposition of a ban on wearing his monastic robes again, has driven a 17-year-old Tibetan Buddhist monk in Qinghai province to take his own life, according to the Tibetan service of rfa.org May 28.
The victim, Kunzang Longyang, died in mid-April in the province’s Dragkar (Chinese: Xinghai) County, Tsolho (Hainan) prefecture, the report cited three sources with direct knowledge of the matter as saying, speaking on condition of anonymity due to safety concerns.
The report noted that China has since 2018 required monks below the age of 18 across the Tibetan Plateau region to be removed from their monasteries.
“Even during their school winter and summer break, the young (former) monks are not allowed to return to their monasteries or go on visits,” one of the sources has said.
“Government officials send people to monitor if monasteries are allowing young monks to visit or return, and monasteries are threatened of severe consequences if they allow the children to return,” the source was quoted as saying.
Longyang was stated to have been removed from the county’s Yulung Monastery three years ago. He was then made to join a local school where he was ordered to stop wearing his monk’s robes and, instead, switch to layman’s attires while attending classes.
As a result, he suffered from severe bouts of depression, during which he did not eat for many days, and became ill.
“This happened several times and each time, school authorities called his family to take him home,” the source has said.
Given his emotional distress, school administrators initially made some exceptions in his case – he was not required to be present throughout the school year, and was allowed to wear his monk’s robes during examinations and inspections run by government officials, the sources have said.
However, these exceptions were ended a few months ago, when the school authorities ordered Longyang and other young monks to disrobe and permanently remain in school. This caused much distress in Longyang, who spoke of wishing to kill himself rather than follow the new order, the sources have said.
Longyang took his own life when he again fell into depression and was sent home in April, the sources have added.