‘Interpreting Tibet’ gives a reality check on the sights of Lhasa, exploring how both China’s assertions of power and Tibetan expressions of identity are revealed in the architecture of the city, as well as the reality behind Tibet’s apparent economic progress. The report advises tourists how to avoid putting Tibetans, and themselves, at risk, and offers tips on how to understand the signs of religious repression, and subtle acts of dissent by Tibetans.
ICT recommends that tourists read it before they leave for Tibet. Carrying a copy in a backpack or suitcase into Tibet could be regarded as a political or ‘splittist’ act (in other words, as an attempt to ‘split’ the motherland), and could therefore put local contacts at risk.
