{"id":12661,"date":"2021-08-06T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-08-05T22:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/savetibet.nl\/nieuws\/china-cancels-major-tibetan-cultural-festival\/"},"modified":"2021-08-06T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2021-08-05T22:00:00","slug":"china-cancels-major-tibetan-cultural-festival","status":"publish","type":"nieuws","link":"https:\/\/savetibet.nl\/en\/news\/china-cancels-major-tibetan-cultural-festival\/","title":{"rendered":"China cancels major Tibetan cultural festival"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Chinese authorities in the Tibetan capital have announced the cancellation of all activities connected to the annual \u201cShoton\u201d festival, citing the risk posed by the surge in COVID-19 cases in China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Shoton, or the \u201cYogurt festival,\u201d which was to begin on 8 August 2021, is among the major religious-cultural festivals in the Tibetan capital of Lhasa. It includes monastic ceremony with a \u201cthangka\u201d (Tibetan religious painting) display, as well as Tibetan opera performances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a <a href=\"https:\/\/mp.weixin.qq.com\/s\/BSXxtQ6u0o9gxTATw0eZQg\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" target=\"_blank\">circular<\/a> dated 5 August 2021, the Lhasa city task force to combat the pandemic said on account of the surge in COVID cases in 17 Chinese provinces and cities, all public-gathering events of the Shoton festival are being halted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The circular said that this was being done \u201cto ensure security and protect the activities connected to the commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the peaceful liberation of Tibet as well as the wellbeing of all people in the city.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Last year, too, the authorities curtailed the programs connected to the Shoton festival on account of the COVID situation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Shoton in Tibetan means \u201cyogurt banquet.\u201d The festival includes the display of a giant thangka by Drepung Monastery and a Tibetan traditional opera performance in the garden of the Norbulingka, the summer residence of the Dalai Lamas. The festival is also connected to the Dalai Lamas, as during the 19th century, the opera performances were moved to the Norbulingka during the time of the 11th Dalai Lama.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/savetibet.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/Tipa-Shoton-Festival-3.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-11080\"\/><figcaption><em>Scene from a Tibetan opera being performed by the Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts in Dharamsala as part of its own Shoton festival in exile<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Chinese authorities have been showcasing this festival as part of their claim of promoting Tibetan culture. However, the festival has also been used to promote their political agenda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This year, it was promoted as part of the celebrations of the 70th anniversary of what China calls the peaceful liberation of Tibet, but what was actually a violent annexation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In 2011, the theme of the festival was, \u201cHappiness-endowed Lhasa, all-encompassing Shoton.\u201d In 2014, the festival\u2019s theme was \u201cBeautiful home, happy Lhasa.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Chinese authorities in the Tibetan capital have announced the cancellation of all activities connected to the annual \u201cShoton\u201d festival, citing the risk posed by the surge in COVID-19 cases in China.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":12662,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"categorie":[691],"news_tag":[670],"class_list":["post-12661","nieuws","type-nieuws","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","categorie-news","news_tag-culture-and-religion"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - 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