China opens Tibet-Nepal highway, ready for military use if needed
September 18, 2017
NDTV, September 18, 2017 – China has opened a strategic highway in Tibet to the Nepal border which could be used for civilian and defence purposes, a move that Chinese experts say will enable Beijing to make forays into South Asia, according to a media report today.
The 40.4-kilometre highway in Tibet between Xigaze airport and Xigaze city centre officially opened to the public on Friday with a short section linking the national highway to the Nepal border.
The highway will shorten the journey from an hour to 30 minutes between the dual-use civil and military airport and Tibet’s second-largest city.
State-run ‘Global Times’ quoted experts as saying that the highway “will enable China to forge a route into South Asia in both economic and defence terms” and being a forerunner to a railway line connecting Nepal.
Geographically, any extension of the road and railway connectivity to South Asia is through India, Bhutan and to Bangladesh.
Chinese officials have said in the past that the projects are feasible and could become a trade corridor for India and China if New Delhi comes on board.
The new road runs parallel with the Xigaze-Lhasa railway and links the city’s ring roads with the 5,476-kilometre G318 highway from Shanghai to Zhangmu on the Nepal border, the report said.
As part of G318, the highway connects the border town of Zhangmu with Lhasa, the capital of Tibet. It can link with the future cross-border China-Nepal railway, said Zhao Gancheng, director of the Centre for Asia-Pacific Studies at the Shanghai Institute for International Studies.
The G318 with Xigaze in the middle connects to Nepal on one end and other end links to Nyingchi, the Tibetan town close to Arunachal Pradesh border. The highway runs very close to the border.
China has been stepping efforts to improve road connectivity between Tibet and Nepal while speeding up plans to build a railway line connecting to Nepal’s border after KP Sharma Oli, pro-China former Nepalese Prime Minister, signed a Transit Trade Treaty with Beijing last year during his tenure.
Mr Oli signed the treaty at the height of the Madhesi agitation and their blockade of Indian goods to provide a major opening for China to reduce Nepal’s dependence on India, even as the transportation of essentials through the Himalayan terrain of Tibet would entail heavy costs for Nepal.
However, since the fall of Mr Oli’s government, China’s plans to speed up its efforts to make forays into Nepal through infrastructure expansion slowed down even though Kathmandu signed up for Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative in May this year.
The 25-meter-wide highway between Xigaze peace airport and Xigaze has four double lanes and is classified a first-tier highway, the Tibet Financial Daily reported.
“Highways in China are of a high standard including the one in Tibet. It can be used by armoured vehicles and as a runway for planes to take off when it has to serve a military purpose,” Mr Zhao said.
“The road is Tibet’s first real highway. It is our gift toward the upcoming 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China,” Wei Qianggao, deputy head of the Tibet transportation department was quoted as saying by the Global Times.
As an important infrastructure programme in the 13th Five-Year Plan and a core section of Tibet highway network, the road will benefit the export-oriented economy of Xigaze and the complex traffic around Lhasa, Mr Wei said.
Over five years, the standard of highways in Tibet and the traffic network have been gradually improved, state-run Xinhua news agency quoted Wang Jinhe, another official from the Tibet transportation department, the report said.
The total highway mileage in Tibet reached more than 80,000 kilometres in 2016, increasing nearly 19,000 kilometres since 2011, Wang said.

China builds road to Nepal border, raises flag
September 11, 2017
Radio Free Asia, September 8, 2017 – Chinese soldiers and civilians building a road from southern Tibet to Nepal set up a banner and Chinese national flag at the border this week, inviting Nepalese citizens on the other side of the line to help them extend the road farther into Nepal, a local source said.
The group, which appeared on Sept. 1 at Nepal’s border with Kyirong county in the Tibet Autonomous Region, distributed food and clothing to the Nepalese, promising to help them with the roadwork and other construction projects in Nepal if permission can be obtained from government authorities in Kathmandu, a resident of the area told RFA’s Tibetan Service.
“The Chinese began building a road from the Tibetan side of the border up to the Nepalese side about two years ago, and they have now finally finished that work,” RFA’s source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
“Now, a group of Chinese military and civilian officials have appeared at the border, raising a banner and the Chinese national flag to win the hearts and minds of the people on the border,” he said.
The banner, which was written in both Chinese and Tibetan, urged loyalty to the Chinese “motherland” and called for “harmonious living,” the source said.
“This is a new development, and the local Nepali residents are concerned and have mixed feelings about China’s distribution to them of free goods,” the source said.
Reported by Lhuboom for RFA’s Tibetan Service. Translated by Dorjee Damdul. Written in English by Richard Finney.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid ra’adAl Hussein, highlights Tibetan human rights defenders
September 11, 2017
[Note – This is an excerpt only. The High Commissioner highlights several countries in his statement which can be read in full at: https://www.unog.ch/unog/website/news_media.nsf/(httpNewsByYear_en)/D0BF0EABE559E1ADC12581980045720E?OpenDocument ]
UN Human Rights Council, September11, 2017- As I enter the final year of my current mandate – a year which I will discharge with vigour and determination – I wish to begin with a few short reflections drawn from the past three years.
Terrorists may attack us, but the intellectual authors of those crimes will then often sit back and watch as governments peel away at human rights protections; watch, as our societies gradually unravel, with many setting course toward authoritarianism and oppression – staging for us, not a century of achievement and pride, but a century that is small, bitter and deprived, for the vast majority of humans.
The second of my reflections focuses on States’ consistency – or lack of consistency – when it comes to human rights commitments: the so-called internal-external gap. Does it not disturb governments to defend the rights of humans elsewhere – in order to project themselves as global players – while at home they openly deny the rights of their own people? Do they not recognize the hypocrisy?
Third, does it not occur to the many Governments who engage in intimidation and bullying, and commit reprisals against human rights defenders and NGOs which work with the UN human rights mechanisms – do they not realise that this only confirms to us, and to the world, how much oppression and injustice they exercise in their own countries? This is not a shared future; it is the theft of their peoples’ inalienable rights.
China is currently drafting its first national law regarding detention centres, with the aim of improving standards of treatment, oversight and accountability. I welcome this and encourage the Government to ensure that the law grants access to independent legal counsel and family members, as well as addressing the ill-treatment in detention and deaths in custody noted by the Committee Against Torture in 2015. The recent death in custody of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo shocked many around the world, as did the deaths, also in custody, of Cao Shunli in 2014 and Tenzin Delek Rinpoche in 2015. Many more are in various forms of deprivation of liberty on questionable grounds, without any independent oversight mechanism, including Wang Quanzhang, Jiang Tianyong, Li Ming-che, Tashi Wangchuk and Liu Xia. I am particularly concerned about action taken against defence lawyers. I commend China’s emphasis on the contribution of development to the enjoyment of all human rights, and suggest it should include a greater focus on vulnerable groups, in particular among the Tibetan, Uyghur and other marginalised populations.
Mr President,
In the first three years of my current term, the world has grown darker and dangerous. My vision for the work of my Office has become more determined, drawing even more deeply on the lessons which come to us from our forbears: human rights principles are the only way to avoid global war and profound misery and deprivation.
In continuing to lead this Office I am inspired by movements of people standing up in many countries in defiance of the indefensible. They seek, not power or personal profit; what they seek is justice.
Thank you.

Tibet activists meet in Mexico City for 2017 Americas regional strategy meeting
September 11, 2017
Canada Tibet Committee, September 9, 2017 – From September 1-3, the CTC participated in the Americas regional meeting of Tibet activists hosted by the International Tibet Network in Mexico City.
The event brought together Tibet Support Groups (TSGs) from Canada, the United States, Mexico, Brazil and Chile. It provided groups a unique opportunity to discuss new campaigns being carried out by their organizations. The TSGs in attendance also participated in workshops designed to build new skills such as strategic planning, improving communication strategies, and strengthening the movement.
During the meeting, CTC representative Ms. Kunchok Dolma, delivered a brief presentation on the recently-launched campaign around the Canada-China Free Trade Agreement. Given Canada’s priority on entering a free trade agreement with China, engaging the debate between business and human rights is a key CTC strategy for keeping the Tibet issue on the Canadian government’s agenda.
President of Central Tibetan Administration, Dr. Lobsang Sangay delivered the keynote speech on the final day of the meeting. He stressed the importance of making the Tibet narrative relevant at the regional level as well as in the global context. President Sangay also emphasized the need to recognize and uncover China’s One Belt, One Road initiative in global trade.
Other speakers included Representative of Latin American Countries, Mr. Tsewang Phuntsok; TSG Liaison Officer of DIIR, Mrs. Sonam Sangmo; Professor Michael Davis from the University of Hong Kong and Jindal Global University; and Alan Cantos who led the team in Spain that launched a lawsuit against former Chinese leaders based on the principle of universal jurisdiction.

Dalai Lama joins international call to end violence against Rohingya
September 11, 2017
The Telegraph, September 11, 2017 – The UN human rights chief on Monday slammed Burma’s apparent “systematic attack” on the Rohingya minority, warning that “ethnic cleansing” seemed to be underway.
“Because Myanmar has refused access to human rights investigators the current situation cannot yet be fully assessed, but the situation seems a textbook example of ethnic cleansing,” Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein told the UN Human Rights Council.
The condemnation came as the Dalai Lama also spoke out for the first time about the Rohingya refugee crisis, saying Buddha would have helped Muslims fleeing violence in Buddhist-majority Burma.
Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya have arrived in Bangladesh in recent weeks after violence flared in neighbouring Burma, also known as Myanmar, where the stateless Muslim minority has endured decades of persecution.
The top Buddhist leader is the latest Nobel peace laureate to speak out against the violence, which the UN special rapporteur on human rights in Burma says may have killed more than 1,000 people, most of them Rohingya.
“Those people who are sort of harassing some Muslims, they should remember Buddha,” the Dalai Lama told journalists who asked him about the crisis on Friday evening.
“He would definitely give help to those poor Muslims. So still I feel that. So very sad.”
The United Nations says 294,000 bedraggled and exhausted Rohingya refugees have arrived in Bangladesh since the militants’ attacks on Burma security forces in neighbouring Rakhine state on August 25 sparked a major military backlash.
Tens of thousands more are believed to be on the move inside Rakhine after more than two weeks without shelter, food and water.
“The operation… is clearly disproportionate and without regard for basic principles of international law,” Mr Zeid said.
“We have received multiple reports and satellite imagery of security forces and local militia burning Rohingya villages, and consistent accounts of extrajudicial killings, including shooting fleeing civilians,” he said.
Aung San Suu Kyi’s government has come in for strong international criticism over the military’s treatment of the Rohingya.
“I call on the government to end its current cruel military operation, with accountability for all violations that have occurred and to reverse the pattern of severe and widespread discrimination against the Rohingya population,” Mr Zeid said.
He said he was particularly “appalled” by reports that Burmese authorities had begun laying landmines along the border with Bangladesh to prevent those who fled from returning.
He also criticised “official statements that refugees who have fled the violence will only be allowed back if they can provide ‘proof of nationality’,” pointing out that Burma since 1962 had been stripping Rohingyas of a wide range of rights, including citizenship rights.
“This measure resembles a cynical ploy to forcibly transfer large numbers of people without possibility of return,” he said.
Mr Zeid urged the Burma government to “stop pretending that the Rohingyas are setting fire to their own homes and laying waste to their own villages.”
“This complete denial of reality is doing great damage to the international standing of a government which, until recently, benefited from immense good will,” he said, calling on authorities to allow his office access to investigate the situation in the country.
Burma’s population is overwhelmingly Buddhist and there is widespread hatred for the Rohingya, who are denied citizenship and labelled illegal “Bengali” immigrants. Buddhist nationalists, led by firebrand monks, have operated a long Islamophobic campaign calling for them to be pushed out of the country.
Burma’s de facto civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi has been condemned for her refusal to intervene in support of the Rohingya, including by fellow Nobel laureates Malala Yousafzai and Desmond Tutu.
Archbishop Tutu, who became the moral voice of South Africa after helping dismantle apartheid there, last week urged her to speak out.
“If the political price of your ascension to the highest office in Myanmar is your silence, the price is surely too steep,” Tutu said in a statement.

Tibetan officials commemorate 57th Democracy Day, call for unity and perseverance
September 4, 2017
Tibetan Kashag, September 2, 2017 – On this special occasion of the 57th anniversary of Tibetan Democracy Day, the Kashag [Cabinet of Department Heads] pays its highest obeisance and bows in deep gratitude to Tibet’s supreme leader and the pioneer of Tibetan democracy, His Holiness the Great 14th Dalai Lama. The Kashag extends its warmest greetings to all Tibetans, and to our friends around the world.
In accordance with His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s great vision, Tibetan democracy came to light on this day, 57 years ago. Before the Chinese occupation of Tibet, even at a young age, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama set up a Reform Committee in an attempt to bring reform in the Tibetan social system. However, with the worsening situation, His Holiness had to take refuge in India and soon after his arrival in India, His Holiness followed his vision by making the political system of exile Tibetans into a democratic institution.
In exile, His Holiness the Dalai Lama made groundbreaking efforts in preserving Tibet’s unique religion, culture, language and identity. Hence, in India, the base of Tibetan Administration was established; schools, settlements, health centres, monasteries, and institutes of learning and culture were also built. His Holiness the Dalai Lama has over the years overcame many trials and tribulations and has through his visionary leadership continued to steer the Tibetans through the right trajectory.
His Holiness established and steered the democratic system of Tibetans in exile through timely administrative and legislative reforms. Tibetan democracy was greatly strengthened with the election of deputies representing all the provinces of Tibet and religious schools in the Tibetan parliament. In an effort towards ensuring equal gender representation, seats for women were reserved in the parliament. Taking stock of the increasing number of Tibetans in diaspora, reserved seats were provided to represent Tibetans in almost 40 different countries. The Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile is now a full-fledged and a vibrant legislative body both in terms of representation as well as its constitution.
Similarly, the Kashag was re-established in exile and procedures of appointing the Kalons were improved. In 2001, His Holiness announced his status as semi-retired and called for the first direct election of the Kalon Tripa, the executive head of Central Tibetan Administration. A decade later His Holiness made a historic change with the announcement of devolution of his political responsibilities to the elected leader. His Holiness declared on August 08, 2011 at the swearing-in-ceremony of Kalon Tripa that he has fulfilled his ‘long cherished goal’ of bringing democracy to the Tibetan people. An amendment to the charter in 2012 changed the title to Sikyong which is now referred as the President of Central Tibetan Administration in English.
Despite the many hardships faced by an exile community including an increasingly scattered Tibetan population, the Tibetan community has over the last five decades successfully transformed into a fully functioning democracy that is lauded by many and has become a paragon of virtue for other exile communities. His Holiness’ farsighted and visionary leadership made this possible. We therefore take this opportunity to express our deepest gratitude to our most esteemed leader.
The establishment of a full-fledged democratic polity in exile and the foundations of the freedom struggle, which is based on the principles of non-violence, have won many supporters and allies, in particular that of many Chinese intellectuals and democracy activists. The pinnacle of unity among Tibetans that was once pertinent during the reign of the three great kings of Tibet has once again been revived under the leadership of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
However, unfortunate incidents of internal bickering and regional discord have in recent past negatively impacted Tibetan unity. It is incumbent upon a democratic polity to champion the cause of diversity of opinion but when infested with vested interests, it not only weakens the fabric of the community but also sows the seeds of discord and disharmony. Therefore, we once again urge every Tibetan to keep in their heart the wise counsel of His Holiness the Dalai Lama calling on Tibetans to be united for the common cause of Tibet.
Since the invasion of Tibet by communist China in 1949, over a million lives have been lost. The Chinese government continues to deny basic freedom for Tibetans and their failed policies in Tibet have exacerbated the human rights situation in Tibet. Consequently, 149 Tibetans have self-immolated in protest since 2009. They have clearly expressed the aspirations of the Tibetans—restoration of freedom for Tibetans and the return of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to Tibet.
The Chinese government, instead of addressing the legitimate aspiration of the Tibetan people has resorted to greater repression and in worse case, the criminalization of self-immolation. This is an abject disregard for basic human rights and a violation of the basic principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
In recent months we have also witnessed two cases of self-immolations in exile. While the Kashag empathizes with the intention of the self-immolators, but we believe that the life of every Tibetan is precious and that we must be alive to fight for our cause. Therefore, the Kashag appeals to every Tibetan inside and outside Tibet to refrain from resorting to drastic actions such as self-immolation. Specifically, the Kashag not only discourages self-immolation protests in exile but we urge the exile Tibetans to pursue more powerful means by honing one’s educational, professional and personal competency to substantially contribute to the Tibetan cause.
Although the Constitution of PRC as well as the National Regional Autonomy Law provides for the right to preserve and promote one’s language and religion, however reality suggest otherwise. Tibetans in Tibet are denied this right and face impediments in practicing their language and religious faith. The systematic clampdown on religious institutes and members of the monastic community are akin to the days of the Cultural Revolution. Since last month, demolition and eviction of residents at Yachen Gar have begun. The large scale demolition and forced eviction of monks and nuns at Larung Gar that began in July last year evinces the attempt of Chinese Government to control Tibetan culture and religious life and is an act of trampling on the basic religious freedom and fundamental rights of the people in Tibet.
Another example is the case of Sabriye Tenberken, a German lady’s school for the blinds established 19 years ago in Lhasa. The Chinese government lauded her accomplishments and even gave awards to her several times. However, the Chinese government recently ordered the closure of the school on the pretext of the school being under western influence. This school had hugely benefitted Tibetan students. This action by the Chinese government has shocked many especially those concerned with children’s education.
Starting from March of this year in the so-called Tibet Autonomous Region, a propaganda campaign called the “Four emphases and four love” was started. Under the banner of “Love the motherland by emphasising unity” fight against separatism and defamation of His Holiness the Dalai Lama has been amplified. We call upon the Chinese government to immediately cease defaming His Holiness the Dalai Lama. If the Chinese government is genuine in their approach to resolving the long-standing issue of Tibet, it is expected of them of refrain from shifting the blame on His Holiness and instead benefit from His Holiness’ wise leadership.
As recognized by many intellectuals and world leaders alike, the Chinese government should accept the fact that His Holiness the Dalai Lama presents the best opportunity and solution to resolving the issue of Tibet. While we remain committed to constructively engage with the Chinese leadership, we call on them to resume dialogue with the representatives of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
In autumn this year, we will witness an important change in the composition of the Chinese leadership during the 19th Party Plenum. With this change in leadership, we hope for a lasting resolution to the issue of Tibet through the Middle Way Approach. The Kashag reaffirms its commitment to the Middle Way Approach as envisioned by His Holiness the Dalai Lama in gaining genuine autonomy for the Tibetan people within the framework of the constitution of the People’s Republic of China.
On this special occasion, we extend our deepest gratitude to the citizens and successive Government of India for their continued hospitality and steadfast support for the Tibetan people for the past 58 years in exile. We also express our sincere thanks to all the friends of Tibet and freedom loving people across the globe who have continued to champion the cause of Tibet.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s visit to Botswana had to be called off last month solely due to exhaustion following a series of travel and public engagements. He has been advised rest. We would like to reassure everyone that His Holiness is in good health.
Lastly, we pray for the long life of His Holiness the Great 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet. May all his wishes be fulfilled and may the non-violent cause of Tibet prevail.
KASHAG
September 2, 2017
Note: This is a translation of the Tibetan statement. Should any discrepancies arise, please treat the Tibetan version as final and authoritative.

Scarred landscapes, piles of rubble and polluted waters… how illegal mining left a trail of devastation across a nature reserve on the Tibetan plateau
September 4, 2017
South China Morning Post, August 30, 2017 – A visit to the area by a reporter for The Beijing News earlier this month found evidence of large-scale environmental damage to the scenic area on the Tibetan Plateau, which is home to the sources of the Yangtze, Mekong and Yellow Rivers.
Photographs showed a landscape ravaged by illegal coal and iron mining, with dirty polluted water and open-pit mines hacked into the surrounding mountainsides.
The reporter visited three illegal mines in Yushu County, a mostly rural, sparsely populated area of Qinghai Province.
At Zhasu coal mine, rubble from explosions littered the area with much of the surrounding alpine vegetation destroyed.
Another nearby coal mine, also abandoned, had mining waste and coal slag residue piled up metres high without being disposed of safely.
Daha coal mine, 38 kilometres away, was found to have miners’ dormitories nearby that were kept in perfect order – a stark contrast to the heaps of industrial waste and sewage that were left untreated outside.
Tens of thousands of tonnes of coal were left exposed to the sun instead of being stored properly, creating a risk of spontaneous combustion.
Beijing launched a nationwide inspection of coal mines earlier this year as part of its crackdown on illegal coal mining due to fears of oversupply, according to Reuters.
“We will completely shut down coal mines that have produced more coal than the government has allowed,” the State Administration of Work Safety was quoted as saying in the report.
“Some of the coal mines repeatedly ignored warnings from us and continued to dig in regions that are deemed unsafe.”
This year, the government plans to shut down “at least 500” coal mines as the world’s biggest producer and consumer of coal begins to switch to alternative sources of energy, according to a National Energy Administration announcement in February.
The serious environmental damage caused by mining includes soil erosion, the formation of sinkholes and water and land pollution on a vast scale.

Tibetan nomads forced from grazing land, winter camps
September 4, 2017
Radio Free Asia, August 30, 2017 – Authorities in a Tibetan-populated county of northwestern China’s Qinghai province are forcing herders from their traditional grazing grounds, imposing stiff fines and threatening to jail anyone remaining in banned areas past a deadline that has now expired, Tibetan sources say.
No explanation was given for the order to move from the pasturage in Golog prefecture’s Darlag county, or for the expulsion of another nomad group from their nearby winter camps, a source in the region told RFA’s Tibetan Service.
“It is the custom of Tibetan nomads to release their sheep and other livestock into the grassland for summer grazing for about two months and 20 days at the end of June or beginning of July,” RFA’s source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
“But this year, while they were grazing, the local Chinese authorities ordered them off the land,” the source said.
Authorities set a deadline of Aug. 23 for the nomads to move, and though most were able to leave by the assigned date, “some did not meet the deadline,” the source said.
“So the officials brought in armed police to threaten the nomads who remained, finally forcing them from the land and fining each of them 1,000 yuan [U.S. $152] for failing to obey the order.”
“They were also told that anyone still left behind would be jailed.”
Nowhere to go
Nomads living in the Horkor and Takor villages of Darlag’s Dernang township have meanwhile been ordered to relocate from areas prepared as winter camps, RFA’s source said.
“But they don’t have anywhere else to go, and are now facing continuing harassment from officials.”
“They are very worried about what is going to happen to them,” he said.
Tibetan nomads are now banned from grazing in, and being required to move from, “some of the best pasture land in all of the Tibetan Plateau, especially in the key prefectures of Yulshul and Golog,” Tibet environmental expert Gabriel Lafitte told RFA in an earlier report.
Chinese policy provides that resettled nomads be given vocational training and access to markets, Lafitte said. “[However], in reality, there is very little vocational training, and resettled nomads have few opportunities to enter the modern economy.”
Reported by Kunsang Tenzin for RFA’s Tibetan Service. Translated by Dorjee Damdul. Written in English by Richard Finney.

India, China agree to pull back troops to resolve tense border dispute
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/india-withdraws-troops-from-disputed-himalayan-region-defusing-tension-with-china/2017/08/28/b92fddb6-8bc7-11e7-a2b0-e68cbf0b1f19_story.html
India and China have withdrawn troops from a disputed Himalayan region on their border, foreign ministries from the two countries announced Monday, defusing a tense standoff that had threatened to provoke armed conflict between the nuclear-armed Asian rivals.
For the past two months, Indian and Chinese troops had faced off on a plateau in the Doklam area in the Himalayas after Indian troops moved in to prevent the Chinese military from building a road into territory claimed by India’s close ally, Bhutan.
China had repeatedly and furiously denounced the Indian move as a direct infringement of its sovereignty, demanded an immediate and unconditional withdrawal, and warned that conflict was a real possibility if that didn’t happen.
On Monday, the two sides announced they had reached an agreement, with India saying its troops were disengaging and China saying it would redeploy forces in response. By the evening, India said both sides had almost completed their withdrawals.
It was not clear from the countries’ public statements whether Beijing had offered any concessions in return for the Indian withdrawal, such as agreeing to halt construction of the road.
China said it would continue to patrol and garrison the area, and to exercise its sovereign rights.
In a short statement, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said the two countries had maintained diplomatic communication about the dispute in recent weeks.
“During these communications, we were able to express our views and convey our concerns and interests,” it said. “On this basis, expeditious disengagement of border personnel at the faceoff site at Doklam has been agreed to and is ongoing.”
Later, it confirmed that forces from both sides were pulling back, adding that the process was “almost completed under verification.”
China’s Foreign Ministry said it was happy to confirm that all Indian “individuals and facilities” had withdrawn to the Indian side of the border. It also implied it would be reducing troop numbers in response to the Indian redeployment.
“The Chinese frontier defense force will continue to patrol and garrison in the Doklam area,” spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a regular news conference. “The situation at the spot has changed, and China will adjust and deploy according to the current situation.”
Hua said China will “exercise its sovereign rights according to the historical treaty and guard its territorial sovereignty.”
China maintains that the area in question was listed as on its side of the border under the 1890 “Convention Between Great Britain and China Concerning Sikkim and Tibet.”
Neither side, though, was willing to admit to having backed down.
“We remind India to learn the lessons from this incident, tangibly abide by the historical treaties and the basic principles of international law, and to meet China halfway, jointly guard the peace and tranquility of the border areas, and promote a healthy development of bilateral military relations,” Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Wu Qian said in a statement.
India said it had always insisted on resolving the dispute through diplomatic channels. “Our principled position is that agreements and understandings reached on boundary issues must be scrupulously respected,” the Ministry of External Affairs said.
An Indian foreign ministry official also told the Associated Press that the two sides had agreed to return to the “status quo.” The cable news channel NDTV reported that Chinese bulldozers had moved away and road construction stopped, according to its sources — implying that India’s demand had been met.
Earlier Monday, the state-owned China Daily newspaper warned that India stood “to face retribution” over the incident, arguing that New Delhi was complacent if it thought China was not prepared for military conflict if necessary.
But Beijing also wanted to resolve the dispute ahead of a meeting scheduled to take place in China this weekend of heads of state from the “BRICS” countries — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
“It’s hugely good news,” said Wang Dehua, an Indian studies expert at the Shanghai Institute for International Studies.
“We have avoided falling into the situation where two major countries with ancient civilizations become hostile enemies,” Wang said, but he cautioned against declaring the incident a diplomatic victory for China.
He said China would try to address India’s security concerns when Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits for the summit but would continue building roads in border areas.
Mao Siwei, former Chinese consul general in the Indian city of Kolkata, said the statements were deliberately “vague” because of the sensitivity of the issue and the reluctance of either side to show weakness.
“Judging from experience and common sense, I guess both sides have come to the following agreement: Firstly, on principle, China would stop its road building and India would withdraw its troops; secondly, regarding the timing, India would withdraw first and China would withdraw later.”
Some India experts also interpreted the statements — and New Delhi’s comments about having raised its security concerns — to mean that China had quietly agreed to stop building the road in question but would not say so publicly.
“I very much doubt that India would have agreed to withdraw unless it involved, at the very least, a commitment from Beijing that it would halt construction of the disputed road,” said Shashank Joshi, an analyst with the Royal United Services Institute in London.
“In these cases, clarity is the enemy of face-saving,” he added. “India will probably be comfortable with China spinning the agreement, because New Delhi is likely to have met its objectives: restoring the pre-June status quo. However, I imagine that India will now be vigilant, as China is likely to conduct more aggressive patrolling in Doklam in the future, having had its claims challenged in such serious fashion.”
The tiny Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan was inadvertently swept up into the dispute when Indian soldiers moved from a nearby garrison into territory Bhutan contests with China to block a road-building crew from China’s People’s Liberation Army.
A few hundred troops from India and China were eventually deployed in a standoff that produced harsh rhetoric — mostly from the Chinese side — and sparked a period of tension between the neighbors not seen in decades, analysts said.
Although India and China have often sparred over disputed areas along their estimated 2,200-mile border — and fought a brief war in 1962 — this clash was unusual because it involved a third country and came at a time when relations between India and China were at a low ebb.
Whether India — long a patron of Bhutan — moved in after coordinating with Bhutanese forces, as the Indians have said, or deployed on its own, as China claims, is the subject of much debate.
Bhutan’s government was careful not to make comments and inflame tensions; aside from one brief statement from its Foreign Ministry, it maintained a calculated

Tibetan monk released after serving 10 years for sharing news of protest
August 28, 2017
Radio Free Asia, August 22, 2017 – A Tibetan monk jailed for 10 years for spreading news of a protest calling for Tibetan freedom was released from a prison in Sichuan this week after serving his full term, Tibetan sources said.
Atruk Lopo, a former chant master of Lithang monastery in the Kardze (In Chinese, Ganzi) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, was freed from Mianyang prison at around 10:00 p.m. on Aug. 21, Lithang Jamyang Tenzin, a Tibetan living in exile, told RFA’s Tibetan Service.
“The Lithang [county] police warned him not to speak too much in public before taking him to his home,” Tenzin said, citing contacts in Lithang.
“Local Tibetans were ordered not to greet him on his return, and he was brought back late at night,” Tenzin said.
Also speaking to RFA, Geshe Adruk Tsetan—a member of Tibet’s India-based exile parliament and a relative of Lopo’s—said that Lopo’s present state of health after a decade served in prison is still unknown.
Lopo was arrested on Aug. 21, 2007 by Lithang county public security officers as he called for the release of his uncle Ronggye Adrak, who had called out in public for the return of exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama during a horse racing festival held earlier that month.
Adrak was later handed an eight-year term for subverting state power and attempting to “split the country,” while Lopo and a friend named Jamyang Kunkyen were sentenced to 10 and nine years respectively for sending photos of Adrak’s protest to “overseas organizations.”
A fourth man, a Tibetan named Lothok, was given a three-year term for providing information to “foreign organizations.”
The four, who were sentenced together, protested when their sentences were read out in court and were bundled away by police, witnesses told RFA in earlier reports.
“This is not a fair trial,” they called out. “We cannot accept this decision.”
Sporadic demonstrations challenging Beijing’s rule and calling for the Dalai Lama’s return have continued in Tibetan areas of China since widespread protests swept the region in 2008.
Reported by Sangye Dorjee for RFA’s Tibetan Service. Translated by Dorjee Damdul. Written in English by Richard Finney.