2024 marks a milestone in China\u2019s brutal occupation of Tibet – but the Tibetan people\u2019s resilience, hope and struggle to bring that occupation to a peaceful end continue. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The year ahead will see the 65th anniversary of Chinese troops seizing full control of Tibet and forcing the Dalai Lama into exile. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
After 65 years, the situation inside Tibet is dire, with Tibet now ranking as the least-free country on Earth alongside South Sudan and Syria, according to the watchdog group Freedom House. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
But on the international stage, support for the Tibetan people is growing, including recently a resolution by the European Parliament that urges China to abolish coercive boarding schools in Tibet, and a major bill moving through the US Congress that will pressure China to bring its occupation of Tibet to a peaceful resolution. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The progress of that legislation – known as the Resolve Tibet Act – is just one of several developments to monitor over the next 12 months. Also on the radar are China\u2019s continuing efforts to forcibly assimilate the Tibetan people, the European Elections, China\u2019s 4th<\/sup> Universal Periodic Review at the United Nations and the Dalai Lama\u2019s upcoming 89th birthday. <\/p>\n\n\n\n As 2024 gets underway, here are ten things to watch in this new year.<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n From 6 to 9 June 2024, citizens of European Union countries will elect their representatives in the European Parliament – the tenth parliamentary election since the first direct election in 1979. This will be an important opportunity to raise awareness about Tibet amongst new MEPs (Members of the European Parliament) and ensure that Tibet remain on the agenda of one of the largest democratic assemblies in the world. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This bipartisan legislation – whose full name is the Promoting a Resolution to the Tibet-China Dispute Act – just unanimously passed the House Foreign Affairs Committee in December. That means it can now move to the House floor while simultaneously advancing through the Senate. The bill aims to pressure China\u2019s government to resume dialogue with Tibetan leaders for the first time since 2010 to reach a negotiated resolution of Tibet\u2019s status. <\/p>\n\n\n\n On 23 January, China will undergo its 4th Universal Periodic Review (UPR) at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. The UPR is a mechanism for assessing the human rights record of every UN member state every four to five years. In July 2023 the International Campaign for Tibet and the International Federation for Human Rights submitted a joint report detailing systematic and widespread patterns of rights violations in Tibet. ICT has also been engaging with governments, including in Europe, to call on them to make strong recommendations on Tibet to China during the review. \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n On 10 March 1959, Tibetans rose as one to resist China\u2019s occupation of their country. Although Chinese troops eventually crushed their uprising, the Tibetans succeeded in helping their leader, the Dalai Lama, escape into exile, where he still lives to this day. This year, on the 65th anniversary of the Tibetan National Uprising and the Dalai Lama\u2019s exile, Tibetans will continue to advocate for a peaceful end to China\u2019s brutality in their homeland. <\/p>\n\n\n\n On 15 March 1988, the International Campaign for Tibet was established to support the Tibetan people\u2019s struggle for human rights and democratic freedoms. In 1999, the ICT Europe office in Amsterdam was opened to extend our work and impact to Europe. This year we are celebrating our 25th anniversary. <\/p>\n\n\n\n China has separated over 1 million Tibetan children from their families at state-run boarding schools as part of a policy of forced assimilation, cutting children off from their parents, language and culture and threatening the core of their Tibetan identity. The US has sanctioned Chinese officials for their involvement in the boarding schools, while several nations, the European Parliament and UN experts have called for the boarding schools to shut down. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Born on 25 April 1989, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima is the 11th Panchen Lama, one of the most important figures in Tibetan Buddhism. But just days after he was recognized by the Dalai Lama in 1995, the Chinese government kidnapped the then-6-year-old boy and replaced him with an impostor. As the Panchen Lama turns 35 this year, Tibetan Buddhists and government officials around the world will call for information on his whereabouts and demand his release. <\/p>\n\n\n\n China is currently trying to replace the internationally recognized name of Tibet. In official reports and external propaganda, the Chinese government refers to the Tibetan homeland with the Chinese-language word \u201cXizang.\u201d This name change is a clear attempt to imply that Tibet is a legitimate part of China. In 2024, China is expected to continue this effort incrementally and strategically. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The Tibetan spiritual leader will turn 89 on 6 July, with Tibetans, Buddhist practitioners and government leaders across the globe sure to celebrate. Previously, the Dalai Lama has said that around age 90, he would make a decision on his succession. The Chinese government has made clear that it intends to interfere in his succession, but the Dalai Lama has said that China will have no role in the process, and the US has passed legislation threatening to sanction any Chinese officials who attempt to name their own future Dalai Lama. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 2024 got off to a great start for Tibet activists when Thermo Fisher Scientific, the US-based biotech firm, announced that it had stopped selling DNA collection kits in the Tibet Autonomous Region, an area that spans about half of Tibet. According to reports, China has collected DNA from about 1 million Tibetans in the region without their consent. Thermo Fisher\u2019s decision followed a year of heavy campaigning by Tibet groups – and showed that collective action for Tibet makes a difference. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" 2024 marks a milestone in China\u2019s brutal occupation of Tibet \u2013 but the Tibetan people\u2019s resilience, hope and struggle to bring that occupation to a peaceful end continue. As the year begins, here are ten things to watch in this new year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":12998,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"categorie":[691],"news_tag":[],"class_list":["post-12997","nieuws","type-nieuws","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","categorie-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n1. The European Elections <\/h4>\n\n\n\n
2. The Resolve Tibet Act <\/h4>\n\n\n\n
3. China\u2019s Universal Periodic Review <\/h4>\n\n\n\n
4. 65th anniversary of the Dalai Lama\u2019s exile <\/h4>\n\n\n\n
5. 25th<\/sup> anniversary of the International Campaign for Tibet Europe\u00a0\u00a0<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
6. State-run boarding schools in Tibet <\/h4>\n\n\n\n
7. 35th birthday of the missing Panchen Lama\u00a0<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
8. China\u2019s attempted renaming of Tibet <\/h4>\n\n\n\n
9. Dalai Lama\u2019s 89th birthday <\/h4>\n\n\n\n
10. Mass DNA collection <\/h4>\n\n\n\n