Tibetans living in Northeast India have voiced strong opposition to China’s Ethnic Unity and Progress Law, calling it an attempt to suppress Tibetan identity and urging the restoration of Tibet’s freedom.
The appeal follows the self-immolation of 52-year-old Tibetan activist LobgaRangzen outside the United Nations headquarters in New York City on July 2. According to a statement issued by Tibetans residing in Northeast India, the protest was directed against China’s occupation of Tibet and what they described as the use of legal measures to criminalise Tibetan resistance.
The statement said the Ethnic Unity and Progress Law, which came into force on July 1, promotes forced assimilation with the Han majority under the banner of national unity. It further claimed that LobgaRangzen’s protest is among more than 160 reported self-immolation cases linked to the Tibetan freedom movement.
The group alleged that Chinese authorities have treated self-immolation cases as “intentional homicide”, leading to collective punishment of Tibetans. It also accused Beijing of using legal and political mechanisms to weaken the Tibetan movement while rejecting the Tibetan exile leadership’s proposed Middle Way Approach for a peaceful resolution of the Sino-Tibetan conflict.
Calling on the Indian government, civil society and citizens to take note of what it described as China’s growing security challenge, the group cited territorial claims, control over rivers originating in Tibet and intimidation tactics as major concerns. It expressed hope that India, as Tibet’s closest neighbour and long-time host to the Tibetan exile community, would play a meaningful role in addressing the Sino-Tibetan conflict.