Zhao Kezhi, the 'Tibetan' arrives in India

Zhao Khezi (left) with Zhao Leji (center), member of the Politburo's Standing Committee
meeting the Tibetan delegates at the NPC, Wu Jingjie, Tibet's Party Secretary (right)

Zhao Kezhi, China's Minister of Public Security will be in India tomorrow.
He will meet Home Minister Rajnath Singh and discuss security cooperation between India and China. During his stay in Delhi, Zhao will also sign a bilateral internal security cooperation agreement.
According to PTI: “The proposed pact is expected to cover areas of intelligence sharing, exchange programme, sharing of best practices, cooperation in disaster mitigation besides others.”
A Chinese delegation has already met some Indian officials on August 28 to discuss Zhao’s visit and the proposed pact.
An Indian official told the news agency: “This will be the first such agreement between the authorities of India and China which look after the internal security of the respective countries.”
PTI added: “While Singh is the head of eight central armed police forces with a combined strength of about 10 lakh personnel, Zhao is responsible for day-to-day law enforcement in China and commands about 19 lakh personnel.”
More interesting Zhao is personally responsible for Tibet in the Communist set-up, being one of the 20 ‘Tibetan’ delegates at the National People’s Congress.
A few months ago, I wrote about his personnel interest in the Tibet affairs.

My March post
In March 2013, I wrote about the Chinese Hans from 'Tibet' on this blog.
I mentioned the nomination of three Han cadres in the Tibet delegation to the National People’s Congress (NPC).
The three members were then
Chang Xiaobing, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of China Unicom Hong Kong Ltd (he was later investigated and sacked), Prof Ding Zhongli, Vice President of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Wang Huning, who since then, has reached the Communist paradise; he is now a member of the Standing Committee of the Politburo.

A new list
Now three new 'Han Tibetans' have been nominated for the 13th NPC.
This time there is no member of the politburo, however Zhao Kezhi (赵克志) the Minister of Public Security will 'represent' Tibet. 
Other members are Guo Qingping (郭庆平) Deputy Governor of the People's Bank of China and Jing Hanchao (景汉朝）Deputy Secretary of the National Political & Legal Committee and member of the Supreme People's Procuratorate.

Zhao Kezhi (赵克志)
Zhao is born in December 1953. He is presently Minister and Party Secretary of the Ministry of Public Security.
He earlier served as Party Secretary in Hebei and Guizhou provinces and has been Governor of Guizhou province and vice governor of Shandong and Jiangsu provinces.
According to his biography, Zhao was born in Laixi, Shandong province. 
Zhao Kezhi entered the work force in March 1973 as a middle school teacher in his native Laixi, Shandong province; he joined the Communist Party of China in January 1975.
In April 1984, he became the mayor and deputy Communist Party Chief of Laixi County; in March 1987, he was transferred and served as mayor and deputy party chief of nearby Jimo and later became party chief of Jimo in 1989.
In December 1997, he was promoted to be the party chief of Dezhou, a prefecture-level city in Shandong.
From February 2001 to March 2006 he was a vice governor of Shandong province.
In 2006, Zhao Kezhi was transferred to neighbouring Jiangsu province, where he was the executive vice governor until August 2010, when he was sent again to southwestern Guizhou province as deputy party chief and acting governor.
A month later, he was elected governor by the Guizhou Provincial Congress.
In July 2012, Zhao was promoted to concurrently serve as the Communist Party Secretary of Guizhou; in December he relinquished his governor post, and Chen Min'er (now politburo member) was selected as his successor.
In July 2015, following the dismissal of Zhou Benshun, Zhao was named party chief of Hebei province.
In October 2017, shortly after the 19th Party Congress, Zhao, then 63, was appointed as the Party Committee Secretary of the Ministry of Public Security.
He took over as Minister of Public Security on November 4, 2017.
He is a member of the 19th Central Committees of the Communist Party of China.

Guo Qingping

Guo Qingping (郭庆平)
The second nominated member of the Tibet delegation for the NPC is Guo Qingping. 
Since March 2015, Guo, a senior economist, is Vice Governor of the People's Bank of China (PBC).
He was born in August 1956.
Here are some details about his career.

• 1982-1991 Vice President, Fuxin City Branch of the PBC
• 1992-October 1998 Vice President, Liaoning Provincial Branch of the PBC; President, Shenyang City Branch of the PBC
• November 1998-November 1999, Vice President, Shenyang Branch of the PBC
• December 1999-January 2003, Director-General, Internal Auditing Department of the PBC as well as Director-General, Asset Disposal Office of the PBC
• February 2003-November 2008, President, Tianjin Branch of the PBC
• December 2008, Assistant Governor, PBC

Is he going to put some order in the accounts of the Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR) or help the region to secure more funds for its development?
In December 2016, The China Daily reported that Guo had announced that Beijing would strengthen its anti-money laundering cooperation with countries and regions along the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Guo affirmed that China would “enhance domestic enforcement of international sanctions at home. …Combating the financing of terrorism regimes and spread of massive weapons of destruction have become the new battle field for anti-money laundering."
He was speaking at the Sixth China Anti-Money Laundering Summit at Fudan University in Shanghai. He also said that China had “established an inter-ministerial mechanism led by the bank with 22 other government agencies, including the Ministry of Public Security and the Supreme People's Court, to combat illegal money transfers.”
What does it mean for Tibet is not clear?
There is a high probability that he will push for an integration of TAR with the BRI in particular with Nepal.

Jing Hanchao

Jing Hanchao (景汉朝)
The third nominated Han in the Tibet delegation is Jing Hanchao.
He is currently Vice-President of the Supreme People's Court.
He is born in 1960 in Shen County of Hebei Province.
In 2009, he became Vice-President, Supreme People's Court.
He started his career in 1984 as a clerk in the Higher People's Court of Hebei Province (at provincial level)
Later he became Assistant Judge in the same Court; he was later promoted Vice-President and then President.
Between 1994 and 1996, he did a Master of Laws at Beijing University while serving Judge in the Economic Tribunal of the Supreme People's Court.
From 1996 to 2006, he was Deputy Secretary Party Committee of the Higher People's Court.
Between 2000 and 2003, he followed a course to become Doctor of Laws from the Southwest University of Political Science and Law in Chongqing.
From 2006 to 2009, he served a member of the Leading Party Group of the Supreme People's Court.
Later he became a Member of the Judicial Committee and the Director of the General Office of the Supreme People's Court.
In February 2017, Jing Hanchao addressed the opening ceremony of a 'public open day' in East China's Zhejiang province, detailing the progress of dealing with individuals and companies who ignore civil court rulings. 
What will be his role in the Tibet delegation to the NPC is not clear, but he will probably make sure that the corruption is tackled and that the Tibetan flies and tigers are caught.

I will come back on the 17 other members on the TAR delegation in a few days.

China's inroads near the Indian borders

The Indian side of the border
On the way to Takshing...

My article China's inroads near the Indian borders appeared in the Edit Page of The Pioneer

Here is the link...

Relaxing PAP scheme is a good idea but as a modern state we must use electronic means to control visitors to India’s frontiers even as we promote border tourism

The Union Government is thinking of relaxing the Protected Area Permit (PAP) scheme to enable foreign tourists visit border areas. This is half good news. Why half? Simply because after the Government starts to ‘think’, results often takes months or years to materialise. Let us hope that it will be done soon.
Apparently, the move was triggered by requests from border States of Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Uttarakhand, Nagaland and Manipur as well as the Union Tourism Ministry. It was announced by Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju, who, as an elected Lok Sabha member from Arunachal Pradesh, has long been aware of the issue. Under the Foreigners (Protected Areas) Order, 1958, all areas falling between the ‘Inner line’ and the International Border of the state are considered to be a ‘Protected Area’.
Responding to a tweet by Pema Khandu, Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh, Rijiju announced the decision about the PAP regime which will allow foreigners to visit the ‘paradise on earth’; he was referring to Shungetser lake north of Tawang, often known as ‘Madhuri Lake’, because the Bollywood actress shot Koyla, also staring Shah Rukh Khan, in the ‘idyllic’ spot.
It is a pity that the Government could not, at the same time, do away with the ‘Inner line’ permit system (for Indian nationals) once and for all. At a time when Artificial Intelligence (AI) has started permeating our lives, the Government is still attached to this 19th century-old scheme which has no place in a modern state. If required, the authorities could find other ‘electronic’ means to control visitors in the Indian frontiers. Hopefully, this would be the next bold decision.
‘Relaxing’ the PAP is nonetheless good for India; after all, these areas are part of the Indian territory and there is no reason why a discriminating ‘Philosophy of North-East Frontier Agency’ put in place by Nehru and his ‘tribal’ advisor Verrier Edwin, should remain in existence. During the 20th century, it has not often protected the local population, while more often alienated them from the main stream of Indian society.
It is also a positive development because happenings on the other side of the border show extremely worrying trends. China is fast developing its frontiers, trying to woo the Tibetan locals, often akin to the Indian populations on the other side of the border.

Yume, the Tibetan side of the border

A few weeks ago, The Tibet Daily asserted, “making the border villages prosperous and well-off is the top priority of the poverty alleviation campaign.” Beijing has, however, a second objective that is to build-up the border defenses against India. With tourism, it plans to kill two birds in one go.
During the recently-concluded National People’s Congress (NPC), Phurbu Dhondup, a deputy and Governor of Lhoka affirmed that there were 96 such border villages in Lhoka Prefecture alone; the prefecture is north of Bhutan and Tawang district.
Dhondup asserted that the Provinces of Hunan, Hubei and Anhui would help Lhoka “make the dramatic transition” from poor border villages to prosperous ones with electricity, first rate access roads, irrigation systems and potable water. The participation of the ‘rich’ Provinces of China in the scheme is an important factor.
Out of the 17-member Tibetan delegation at the NPC, four members were from the borders with India. One Kesang Dikyi, who comes from Metok, north of Tuting sector of Arunachal, which recently witnessed a border intrusion (with Chinese excavators), is a primary school teacher. During a Press conference in Beijing, she remarked: “Our school building was very poor; teachers and students had to pick grass to cover the roof. The grass was taller than we were, so when we were walking back we’d often trip, and we often had our hands cut. If we didn’t pick the grass, rainwater would leak into the classroom.” All this has changed in the recent past.
On March 4, Xinhua announced: “Tibet will strive to make highways reach all townships and administrative villages by 2020 in a bid to boost rural development. …By 2020, all townships which meet necessary conditions and 80 per cent of administrative villages would have access to bus service.”
This includes the border villages north of Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Uttarakhand and Ladakh.
According to a senior transport official of the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), “road construction will help the region reduce poverty and increase the income of farmers and herders.”
In 2018, the region will launch projects to make 13 townships and more than 1,000 villages connected by asphalt or cement roads; in other words, ‘an integrated transportation system’ reaching the border with India.
The New Helmsman, Xi Jinping has articulated the dual objective to combat poverty and protect the borders. An article in China Tibet Online noted: “Through accurate identification of those requiring help, the number of poverty-stricken people has reduced by more than 500,000 in the last four years. The TAR’s Poverty Alleviation Office has gradually established a targeted poverty alleviation system, whereby the causes of poverty are analysed.”
For Beijing, tourism is the best way to tackle poverty ...and to protect its borders (by buying the local population on China’s side).
A turning point was Yume. In October 2017, President Xi wrote a letter to two young Tibetans who had introduced to the Chinese President, Yume, their hamlet located north of the McMahon Line (Upper Subansiri district of Arunachal Pradesh).
Soon after, The Global Times reported: “A sparsely populated township [Yume] has been connected to the state electricity grid, ending life without electricity for its 32 residents.”
The China Daily noted another development north of Arunachal: “After getting access to electricity and the construction of new roads, tea farmers and herdsmen in a village some 200 kilometers southwest of Lhasa in Tsona county founded a cooperative that provides skills training and job opportunities for villagers.” Tsona, an area now extensively developed, is the first small town in Tibet, north of Tawang district of Arunachal.
At the end of the NPC’s sessions, Beijing announced the complete withdrawal of “civilian-oriented, firefighting and frontier defence troops” from the control of the People’s Liberation Army.
What does it mean? The Global Times explained: “The withdrawal of armed police force units engaged in civilian affairs would disentangle the previous complicated chain of command.” It signifies that the PLA will only be given the responsibility of manning the border with India, without having to waste time in ‘fire-fighting’ and other tasks.
The former militia and ‘frontier forces’ will be put under the command of the local party bosses, in a way empowering the local population to man the borders.
With all these happenings on the other side of the India’s northern border, it was high time that India starts promoting border tourism, including for foreigners, and develops these areas, while keeping the environment as idyllic as possible. There is no harm in copying China once in a while.

What Emperor Xi can teach India

Metok, north of Upper Siang district of Arunachal

My article What Emperor Xi can teach India appeared in Mail Today/DailyO

Xi Jinping made it. He can now retain his seat for life.
The South China Morning Post reported: “Under the watch of a confident and relaxed President Xi Jinping, nearly 3,000 Chinese lawmakers were nearly unanimous in their approval of changes to the state constitution that included removing the term limit on the presidency.”

Chinese Constitution
The Hong Kong newspaper said that Xi, who had maintained a poker face throughout the opening day of People’s National Congress (NPC), appeared ‘much more at ease after the vote’.
Only two of the 2,964 deputies voted against the constitutional revisions; the process was over in just one hour: no debate took place, no discussion and not even canvassing. Done!
While the international press mainly noted the Emperor-for-life aspect, there is more to the recent amendments of the Chinese Constitution.
The China Daily titled: ‘Xi leading the charge on reform’.
Perhaps more than a personal determination to emulate Mao, Xi seems to want to transform China into a great power; he calls it the ‘Chinese Dream’.
Will Xi leave place for others to exist in the process is a recurrent question.
On March 5, during an interaction with the deputies from Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Xi elaborated his vision for the new era “a way to realize the people's aspiration to live a better life and push forward China's modernization.”
2018, which marks the 40th anniversary of Deng Xiaoping's opening-up policy, will see a string of changes which should take China closer to ‘a moderately prosperous society in all respects’.
Xi pledged to continue deepening reform with ‘great political courage’; to move forward, the Chinese people were ready to ‘cut paths through mountains, and build bridges across rivers’, he said.
A day after Xi’s ‘promotion’, more than two dozen ministries and agencies were overhauled to give the Communist Party greater control …and more teeth.
The South China Morning remarked: “The sweeping institutional changes are part of Xi’s plan to improve the Communist Party’s governing efficiency by shaking up vested interests among agencies.”
It includes the merger of the banking and insurance regulators, a special ministry to oversee the status of military veterans and a new Discipline Commission with larger powers to tackle rampant corruption.
The nomination of a Vice-president, Xi’s friend and close collaborator, Wang Qishan, is another sign of change.
One of the not-often mentioned reforms stressed by Xi Jinping, is the deepening of the “military-civilian integration to provide impetus and support for realizing the Chinese dream and the goal to build a strong military.”
On the side of the NPC, Xi, who also Chairman of the all-powerful Central Ministry Commission (CMC) met the PLA delegation; he told them: “Implementing the strategy of military-civilian integration is a prerequisite for building integrated national strategies and strategic capabilities."
He urged the defence forces to “promote military development featuring higher quality, efficiency, and scientific and technological levels.”

Bordering Areas
Another aspect of the reform is the development of China’s land borders (with India in particular). Not only will the military-civilian integration translate into new infrastructure on India’s northern borders, but the development will be labeled ‘infrastructure for tourism’, while being used by the PLA to reinforce its position.
A ‘democratic’ touch is being given to the process.
Soon after the conclusion of the 19th Congress in November last year, President Xi Jinping sent an answer to two young Tibetan herders who had written to him introducing their village, Yume, north of Upper Subansiri district of Arunachal Pradesh.
Xi encouraged the sisters: “to set down roots in the border area, safeguard the Chinese territory and develop their hometown. Without the peace in the territory, there will be no peaceful lives for the millions of families."
Drolkar and Yangzom, the two sisters, had told Xi about their experience of living in a border area; their village, Yume is not far from the remote Indian village of Takshing.

Village Saga
A letter from the Emperor was enough for Drolkar to get a seat as a NPC deputy. Drolkar's sudden celebrity has helped her village to grow exponentially; many Tibetans from the nearby villages now want to move their homes to Yume. Villagers are building new guest accommodations to receive Han tourists, who have started pouring in. As a result the village will become wealthier ...and the border more stable.
That is precisely the Emperor's plan.
Another deputy to the NPC, Kelsang Dekyi comes from Metok, north of Tuting sector of Arunachal, which recently witnessed a border intrusion (with Chinese excavators).
Kelsang Dekyi was born in 1978, symbolically the beginning of an era which saw the Chinese people “relying on knowledge to change its destiny;” she grew up in Metok County “once a remote, poverty-stricken, and information-poor area.”
Kelsang Dekyi told a press conference in Beijing: “Our school building was very poor; teachers and students had to pick grass to cover the roof. The grass was taller than we were, so when we were walking back we'd often trip, and we often had our hands cut. However, if we didn't pick the grass, we couldn't cover the roof, and rainwater would leak into the classroom."
These two appointments show the importance that Xi attaches to the border with India.
Statistics show the 75% of the NPC’s deputies are new faces, with similar stories. Will it help China to build a better China? It is not certain, because many of these nominations are just for the show.
Incidentally, would a local girl from Takshing village on the Indian side of the border, write a letter to Delhi? One can bet that it would go unnoticed by the authorities; it may not even be delivered. Still India is a democratic nation.

The Tale of Three Zhaos

Many of us have been introduced to Tibet by the famous cartoon The Adventures of Tintin.
One can’t forget the two detectives, Thomson and Thompson (in French, Dupond et Dupont). Though they are rather poor detectives (like Inspector Jacques Clouseau), they provide so comic relief to the reader..
These characters, who look like identical twins (despite their different, though sounding-same surnames), came back to mind, when I saw the picture of China’s two main detectives, Zhao Leji and Zhao Kezhi attending a session with the Tibetan delegates at the 13th National People Congress (NPC).
Zhao Leji is the Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, (CCDI) the party's top anti-corruption body. He is also a member of the all-powerful Politburo Standing Committee.
Zhao Kezhi is Minister and Party Secretary of the Ministry of Public Security; in other words, he is responsible for the security in the Middle Kingdom. As mentioned earlier on this blog is also a centrally-nominated delegate from Tibet to the NPC.
Let us not forget that the CCDI has the power to summon and detain without charge any member it suspects of breaching party rules and regulations. Suspects are barred from seeing a lawyer while they are detained.

Zhao Leji (center), Zhao Khezi (left) and Wu Yingje (right)

Zhao and Zhao do not bring comic relief to anyone in the Kingdom.
The South China Morning Post noted: “A new supervision law detailing how the new super agency will operate is to be put to a vote on March 20, the last day of the legislative meeting.”
According to the Hong Kong newspaper, the new agency will be a merger of several government and prosecutorial anti-graft departments: “A  whole chapter in the amended constitution is dedicated to the new agency. Its chairperson will be appointed by the National People’s Congress, which is the only body overseeing the commission. The legislature also has the power to dismiss the agency’s chairperson.”
Zhao Leji will be chairman of the new Commission.
The fact that China’s two supreme detectives attended the meeting of the Tibet delegation does not augur well for the aspirations of the Tibetans.
A website site mentioned in an earlier post said: “The TAR spends around three to five times more on domestic security than the average of all provinces and regions. Likewise, Xinjiang’s spending between 2014 and 2016 has been double that of the national regional average, and over triple in 2017. While domestic security spending across all provinces and regions rose by 215 percent between 2007 and 2016, Xinjiang’s grew by 411 percent, the TAR’s by 404 percent, and Qinghai Province’s by 316 percent (Qinghai’s population is 25 percent Tibetan). Spending in Sichuan Province increased by 234 percent, but spending in Sichuan’s two Tibetan Autonomous Prefectures, Ganzi and Aba, which have seen numerous self-immolations since 2008, grew by 295 percent.”
The same website remarked: “Incredibly, the TAR and Xinjiang are beginning to rival the per capita domestic security expenditures of the United States. This is despite the fact that Chinese human resource and local security technology costs are far lower than in the West.”

Meeting the Tibetan delegates
While President Xi Jinping met with the NPC’s deputies from the Chongqing municipality to urge them to follow a ‘clean and upright political ecology’, Zhao Leji told the Tibetan delegation that “the campaign against the mentality and action of privilege seeking should be continued.”
According to Xinhua, he called “for actions against formalities for formalities' sake, bureaucratism and various kinds of misconduct, so as to keep the pressure on conduct problems.”
It is at least what was reported...

Drolkar alias Choekar

Stability of the borders with India
In the meantime the propaganda about the Indian borders continues.
Drolkar (earlier spelt Choekar), the deputy of Yume, north of the McMahon Line, said that she wants to build her hometown as beautiful as kalsang flower (a reference to the letter that she received from Xi Jinping).
"Great changes have been seen in my hometown," she affirmed.
She added: "We have highways, we have power, and new homes are being built as well. We also have stores, restaurants, and family inns right in the village. You even don't need cash when shopping, for everything can be paid via your cellphone,"
Border people are happy in China according to Drolkar with their “more and more convenient life in hometown.”
Drolkar said she will continue to safeguard the border region in future.
For half a century, her family grazes their sheep and cattle there to safeguard the border area, asserted Drolkar.
Xinhua commented that her story has deeply touched the heart of people across the country.
So, where is the need of the two top detectives of the Kingdom, Zhao and Zhao, monitoring Tibet affairs, is people are so happy?
And one should not forget the Third Zhao, General Zhao Zhongqi, the commander of the Western Theater Command, who looks after the Indian borders and is said to have started the conflict in Doklam last year.
The Tale of the Three Zhao is a sad story.

How to be elected to the People's National Congress

Xi Jinping made it.
He can remain in his seat for life.
The voting process was completed in record time and the constitutional revisions got the highest approval since 1999.
The South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported: “Under the watch of a confident and relaxed President Xi Jinping, nearly 3,000 Chinese lawmakers were nearly unanimous in their approval of changes to the state constitution that included removing the term limit on the presidency.”
The Hong Kong newspaper said that Xi, who had maintained a poker face throughout the opening day of People’s National Congress (NPC), appeared much more at ease after the vote: “He even smiled when Wang Cheng, the vice-chairman of the National People’s Congress, announced the final result of the voting. Only two of the 2,964 deputies voted against the constitutional revisions, three others abstained and one ballot was declared invalid.”
That is not much opposition for a so-called democratic process.
In 2004, when China's constitution was last amended, it had taken two hours.
This time the process was over in just one hour: no debate took place, no discussion and not even canvassing.
SCMP remarked: “The whole event was meticulously managed to the last detail. All the deputies gathered at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing at 3pm sharp. Each received a pink ballot paper the size of an A4 sheet. They were given a short briefing on how to use a specially designed pen to tick the box of their choice before putting the completed ballot papers in 28 red, electronic ballot boxes designed to immediately scan and record the results.”
Done!
Xi can remain as long as he wants ...or as long as his health permits.

Data on the NPC
Before the vote, a website npcobserver.com published data about the NPC; the figures are derived from the raw data provided on the NPC’s site: "The 2,980 delegates—roughly three-quarters of whom have never held such a position—are set to vote on the draft constitutional amendment in just a few hours. … But who exactly are these delegates, allegedly ‘hand-picked’ by President Xi Jinping and poised to reward him with indefinite tenure? "
Three quarters at least owe their jobs to Xi.
The analysis about the NPC's ethnicity is particularly interesting : « There are 55 officially recognized ethnic minorities in China. Collectively, they are apportioned 14.7% of the seats in the 13th NPC—a percentage both higher than their proportion in the Chinese population and than the guideline value set by the 12th NPC a year ago ('approximately 12%').  The figure shows the ten ethnic minorities with the most seats in the 13th NPC. Except the Manchu, they are also the ten largest minorities in China, according to the 2010 national census (though the order is different). While all 56 ethnic groups are represented in the 13th NPC, half (28) are each represented by only one delegate. Han delegates are on average almost five years older than non-Han delegates, more likely to be CPC members, and significantly (not in the statistical sense) likely to be male."

from npcobserver.com

How are these delegates elected?
Take the case of a Tibetan delegate Choekar (or Dolkar).

Choekar (left)

As mentioned in this blog in November, soon after the conclusion of the 19th Congress, President Xi Jinping wrote a letter to two young Tibetan herders who had written to him introducing their village, Yume, north of Upper Subansiri district of Arunachal Pradesh.
Xinhua then reported that Xi “encouraged a herding family in Lhunze [Lhuntse] County, near the Himalayas in southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, to set down roots in the border area, safeguard the Chinese territory and develop their hometown.”
Xi acknowledged “the family's efforts to safeguard the territory and thanked them for the loyalty and contributions they have made in the border area. Without the peace in the territory, there will be no peaceful lives for the millions of families," he wrote.
The two Tibetan girls, Choekar and Yangzom had told Xi about their “experiences in safeguarding the border area and the development of their township over the years.”
Choekar's village, Yume (or Yumai or Yulmed) is located a few kilometers north of the McMahon Line, not far from the remote Indian village of Takshing.

Choekar (center)

It was enough for getting appointed a NPC delegate
It appears that many Tibetans from the nearby villages now want to move their homes to Yume. Choekar's sudden celebrity will certainly help  her village to grow exponentially ...and the border to be better protected.
Han tourists have already started pouring.
Villagers will build new guest accommodations and the border village will become wealthier  ...and the border will become more stable.
That is the Emperor's plan.
Of course, the Government of India is unable to think in this manner (in fact, can the Government think?)
Should a local girl from Takshing village on the Indian side of the border, write a letter to Delhi, it would go unnoticed by the authorities; it may not even be delivered.
Choekar had written about the importance for the border population to protect the sovereignty of the Motherland: by developing the border economy, poverty could be reduced.
Choekar, before her elevation was officially Village Affairs Oversight Committee Director, but now she is more, she is one of the 2,964 Chinese who took part in the historic vote; they ‘elected’ the new emperor.
The story does not say what has happened to the two who voted against the amendment of the Constitution.
Probably, the lenient ruler can allow this much dissidence.
It does not mean that the task will be easy for Chairman Xi; his new promotion may not help him to solve the immense problems facing the Middle Kingdom.
But this is another story.

The 'Tibetan' Hans

Wang Huning, Politburo Standing Committee member in the Tibetan delegation

In March, China will have a new government or State Council.
Its composition is already more or less known.
The always well-informed South China Morning Post announced the names of most of the State Council’s members.
It will however have to be ratified by the People’s National Congress (NPC) next March.
Some 20 ‘Tibetan delegates’ represent the Tibetan Autonomous Region at the NPC.
Among them are a few Hans.
In the last NPC, the most illustrious member of the Tibet delegation has been Wang Huning, today member of the CCP’s Politburo Standing Committee, Executive Secretary of the Secretariat of the CCP Central Committee and Director of the Central Policy Research Center of the CCP Central Committee.
He will probably be re-nominated (incidentally, President Hu Jintao was also a member of the Tibet delegation).
Another Han member used to be Chang Xiaobing, former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of China Unicom; since then he has been ‘investigated’ and he is today languishing in jail. He will be replaced by another corporate tycoon.
A third one has been in the news this week.
It is Prof Ding Zhongli, Vice President of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, who has just been nominated Chairman of China Democratic League (CDL).
According to his biography, Ding Zhongli is a native of Zhejiang province. Born in 1957, he graduated from Zhejiang University, and received a doctorate from the Institute of Geology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He is the director of the Institute of Geology and Geophysics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Since 2008, he became vice-president of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Ding Zhongli has been researching paleoclimatology and the Chinese loess deposits for over twenty years. He and his co-authors systematically investigated the loess stratigraphy of the Loess Plateau, demonstrated the continuity of the loess-soil sequence by correlating the loess sections of the Plateau, and subdivided the loess deposits into 37 pedostratigraphical units in the past 2.6 Ma. He established an orbitally-tuned time scale for the loess sequence on the basis of the Baoji grain-size record. …By correlating the climate records of the loess with those of the deep-sea sediments, he showed that changes in global ice volume may have been a major factor in driving glacia-interglacial variations of the Asian monsoon system.
Why is Ding member of the Tibet delegation at the NPC?
One reason might be that the Chinese leadership wants to keep a tab on the environment of the plateau (Xi can keep an eye on the political developments through Wang Huning).
Prof Ding has now become Chairman of the China Democratic League (CDL).
What is the CDL?
It is a ‘political’ party founded in March 1941; it is headquartered in Beijing and it has a membership of 230,000. The ideology of the party is ‘Socialism with Chinese characteristics’.
The CDL (or Minmeng) is one of the eight legally recognised political parties in the People's Republic of China.
At the time of its formation (in 1941), it was a coalition of three pro-democracy parties and three pressure groups. Its two main goals were to support China's war effort during the Second Sino-Japanese War and to provide a ‘Third Way’ from the Nationalists and the Communists.
The party tilted towards the CCP during the Chinese Civil War.
According to Wikipedia: “Thereafter, two of its constituent parties, the China National Socialist Party and the Chinese Youth Party, left the League to join the Nationalists in Taiwan. The ‘Third Party’ eventually became the Chinese Peasants' and Workers' Democratic Party in 1947. It left the League, but remained pro-Communist.”
In 1997, it adopted a constitution, which stipulated that its program was "to hold high the banner of patriotism and socialism, implement the basic line for the primary stage of socialism, safeguard stability in the society, strengthen services to national unity and strive for the promotion of socialist modernisation, establishment and improvement of a market economy, enhancement of political restructuring and socialist spiritual civilisation, emancipation and development of productive forces, consolidation and expansion of the united patriotic front and realisation of the grand goals of socialism with Chinese characteristics."
We may have to wait next March to see if Prof Ding is still a member of Tibet delegation to the NPC, but there is no reason why he should not be.
The question remains what is/will be his contribution?
The CDL's program is probably fitting with Beijing’s objectives in Tibet.
A Chinese government website noted that in September 1949 the CDL attended the First Plenary Session of the CPPCC in Beijing. It took part in drawing up the Common Program and preparing for the establishment of the People's Republic of China: “Since New China was founded, the CDL has been sharing weal and woe with the CPC and making important contribution to the state political life, economic construction, culture and education.”
With Wang Huning and Ding Zhongli, Beijing can keep a close check on the political and environmental developments on the plateau.
Whether the Tibetans will benefit the presence of these two Han delegates is another issue.

'Tibet' delegate prosecuted

Three years ago, in a post ‘Chinese Hans from Tibet', I mentioned that three senior Han officials had been nominated in the Tibetan delegation to the National People’s Congress .
One was Wang Huning, the powerful member of the Politburo and close confidant of President Xi Jinping.
He was probably put in this position to report to his mentor the ‘feelings’ of other Tibetan delegates.
The second Han in the delegation is Dr. Ding Zhongli, a well-known environmentalist, whose job seems to keep a tab on the plateau’s environment.
The third one was Chang Xiaobing, former Chairman of state-owned China Unicom for 14 years before taking over China Telecom in August 2015.
However, he was detained as part of a graft probe in late December 2015.
I had mentioned it here 'Tibet delegate to the Congress investigated'.
Now Chang Xiaobing faces prosecution, as the Communist Party wrap up an internal anti-graft investigation against him.
The South China Morning Post reported: “The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection said that Chang allegedly took bribes, interfered in the anti-graft agency’s inspection and violated state-owned enterprise corporate governance rules.”
He has been expelled from the party and sacked from all public offices and the prosecutors have taken over his case.
According to the Hong Kong newspaper, “the investigation into Chang was related to allegedly corrupt activity during his time at China Unicom.”
According to a letter by a mainland credit assessment company, Chang would have sold a state-owned office building in Beijing at 800 million yuan below the market price to benefit the family of the disgraced former Central Military Commission vice-chairman Guo Boxiong.
Once again, a corruption case points the finger at the People’s Liberation Army and its two infamous vice-chairmen, General Guo Boxiong and General Xu Caihou.
Who will replace Chang in the Tibet delegation is not known.

Yearly Communist Rituals are on

Khatas are presented to Xi by the Qinghai delegation at the NPC

Who says that the Communists do not believe in rituals?
Every year in March, the same rituals take place in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.
Deputies of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and the National Peoples’ Congress (NPC) assemble in Beijing to demonstrate the ‘vitality’ of China’s democratic system …with Chinese characteristics.
The High Mass is known as the 'Two Sessions'.
Deputies from far-away (and often restive) provinces land in the capital to ‘debate’ and vote the new Laws of the Land.
Incidentally this year they have to ratify a new counter-terrorism law, which may not be to welcome by the 'ethnic' masses.
Monika Chansoria wrote in The Sunday Guardian: “The anti-terrorism law’s Article 18 establishes obligations of technology companies to assist the Ministry of Public Security and Ministry of National Security in investigating terrorism, including providing technical support and assistance with information encryption. This essentially implies that technology firms will be required to install ‘backdoors’ in products or hand over sensitive information including encryption keys to the Chinese government.”
A frightful program!

Tibetan delegate

The Ritual Visit
An important part of the rituals is costumed parade of the ‘ethnic’ delegates wearing colourful dresses, impressive hats and shiny jewelry ...and Communist badges.
The Mass is also for the ‘regional’ delegation, the occasion to get the darshan (and sermon) of one of Magnificent Sevens (i.e. the members of the Standing Committee of the Politburo),
I had been wondering who of the Sevens, would drop by at the ‘Tibetan party’ this year.
In 2013, Xi Jinping, the Numero Uno himself appeared.
In 2014, Yu Zhengsheng, No 4 in the hierarchy, provided the annual lecture (‘follow the Party’).
Last year, Wang Qinshan, No 6 and the czar of the anti-corruption campaign, delivered the Message on behalf of the Sevens.
This year, Zhang Gaoli, No 7 and Chinese Vice Premier, attended the second session of the NPC Fourth Session and met the ‘Tibetan’ delegates.
Xinhua reported that the Vice Premier participated in the deliberations with the ‘lawmakers’ from Tibet Autonomous Region.
Zhang Gaoli took the opportunity to stress some important principles, such as governing Tibet according to the Law, striving to make people rich or working through long-term development, for the region bright future.
Zhang asked the 'Tibetans' to continue building a moderately prosperous society, for that: “Tibet needs to strengthen ethnic unity and make earnest efforts to maintain stability,” he added.

Zhang Gaoli and the Tibet delegation

‘Follow Xi’
Zhang also explained that it is important to 'follow' General Secretary Xi Jinping and read the series of his important speeches, and implement his ‘Four Comprehensives’; Tibet should adhere to the directions of the Party's leadership, follow the rule of law and work for the cohesion of the people of different nationalities …by keeping in mind Chinese characteristics ...as well as the characteristics of Tibet's development path.
When the ‘Tibetan’ delegates gave their views, Zhang Gaoli listened and took notes; from time to time, he interrupted the speaker to inquire about the situation in Tibet.
The atmosphere was very warm, commented Xinhua.
It has to be!
Interestingly, among the 20 ‘Tibetan’ delegate (on a house of 2,900 members), only 15 are Tibetans or belonging to ‘border’ tribes (memba and lopa).
Apart from Chen Quanguo, the TAR Party Secretary and Wu Yingjie, his deputy, 3 Han have been nominated to keep a check on the Tibetans.
One is Wang Huning, Xi’s closest collaborator and member of the Politburo; another one is Prof Ding Zhongli from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (probably keeping an eye on the environment of the plateau).
The last ‘Tibetan’ Han delegate is (was) Chang Xiaobing, till December 2015 the Chairman of China Telecom, who is now ‘investigated’ by the sleuths of Wang Qishan. He was obviously not seen on the pictures, as he is probably in jail.
Wang Huning too did not appear during the deliberations (at least on the published pictures).

Where was Xi Jinping?
According to The China Daily, the Chinese president joined a panel discussion with the delegates from Qinghai province.
He spoke at length about the environment of the Tibetan plateau, particularly about the Sanjiangyuan Nature Reserve (or the Three Rivers Nature Reserve); it is where the headwaters of the Yellow River, the Yangtze River, and the Mekong River are located.
Xi said that protecting the fragile ecology there is of utmost importance.
He told the local government officials that it was their duty to protect the ecological environment on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, especially in the Sanjiangyuan area: "The ecological environment has irreplaceable value. We should treat it as our lifeline and protect it like the apple of our eye.”
According to Xinhua, President Xi urged the officials to try hard to lift people out of poverty and maintain ethnic unity (Tibetans and Hui constitute at least half the population of Qinghai.
Sanjiangyuan is said to be one of the world's most biologically diverse nature reserves, the area is home to more than 2,200 types of wild plants, 85 animal species and over 230 kinds of birds, explained the Chinese news agency: “However, since the late 20th century, the source lakes have shrunk as a result of environmental damage caused by human activities and overgrazing.”
In December, the Central Leading Group for Comprehensively Deepening Reforms, headed by Xi, passed a bill to launch a national park in Sanjiangyuan, highlighting the area's significance as a national focus for environmental protection.
Xi told the lawmakers that the ecological system of the plateau is fragile and glaciers, lakes, rivers and wetlands should be protected to guarantee that ‘rivers of clean water run eastward’.
Is the Chinese President really aware of the importance of the plateau for Mainland China?
Only Beijing's actions will tell!
Luo Huining, Qinghai’ Part boss and also a member of the NPC, affirmed that Sanjiangyuan is the most sensitive place for global climate change and the ecology there is related to the water safety of China and the rest of Asia.
More controversial is the decision of the Qinghai government to relocate 60,000 residents (read 'nomads') from the national park area ‘for ecological restoration’.
Luo asserted: “Our goal of establishing Sanjiangyuan national park is not to boost tourism, but to protect the ecology there."
Can he be believed?
The nomads will the first to pay the price of ‘relocation’.

On the other side of the Himalaya
India is also concerned by the new dams coming up on the Yarlung Tsangpo/Siang/Brahmaputra in Tibet (3 more like the Zangmu dam during the 13th Five-Year Plan).
Though China announced that the projects are “scientifically planned to ensure that there is no impact on water flows to downstream areas “, can Beijing be trusted in the absence of any trans-border treaty or agreement?
Beijing however affirmed that its position is ‘just and legitimate’.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei even told PTI: “There has been good cooperation between China and India on the issue of trans-border rivers for a long time. The Chinese side has overcome many difficulties and provided service such as provision of hydrological data to the Indian side thus playing a positive role".
This is a ritual declaration.

A few comments
1- Where was Gyatsen Norbu, the Chinese Panchen Lama?
He was not seen on any picture though he is a member of the CPPCC National Committee?
Was he indisposed?
2- Why are the Sikyong candidates so uninterested by what is happening in Tibet and China? They do not have anything to say on the seriousness of the situation inside Tibet?
3- Why only 20 delegates for the Tibetan Autonomous Region?
Han chauvinism probably.

More infrastructure, more tourists, more infrastructure...

Tibetan delegates in uniform arriving at the NPC in Beijing

International media reported last month that Tibet would be closed to foreigners for 5 weeks, till the end of March.
CNN explained: “The closure has been an annual occurrence since 2008 when the Tibetan capital Lhasa was rocked by riots linked to the anniversary of an uprising against Beijing rule. Authorities have also stopped issuing travel permits to foreign travelers at short notice during periodic unrest.”
At the same time, according to The China Daily, “Tibet hopes to become a top global destination.”
The Chinese daily asserts:

In a bid to attract more tourists and become one of the world's top destinations during the next five years, the Tibet autonomous region would like to shorten the time it takes to issue travel permits to foreigners. Currently, foreign travelers need Tibet travel permits to tour the region, in addition to a Chinese visa.

The Communist publication rationales the new craze for the Roof of the World, which is

based on Tibet's unique ethnic traditions, cultural heritage, reception capacity and ecological protection needs. Without the permits, which must be applied for through an authorized travel agency, foreigners can't board a flight or train to Tibet.

This is called a contradiction …with Chinese characteristics.
Visitors are banned to visit to Tibet for several weeks, but they are welcome…

Hong Wei, a deputy director of the Tibet Tourism Development Commission and a member of the Tibet delegation at the National People's Congress (NPC) affirms:

Tibet will be more open to domestic and foreign tourists in the next five years. We will simplify the procedure for foreigners to obtain travel permits and cut the waiting time.

Padma Choling, the TAR’s Deputy Secretary (the senior ethnic Tibetan in Lhasa) clarified that Tibet had no plan to completely abolish permits for foreign travelers “because its natural environment is complicated and the purpose of the permits is mainly to ensure the safety of the travelers.”

It is indeed complicated
During the same press conference at the NPC, Li Yiqiang, the deputy director of Shannan (Lokha) Prefecture stated that the number of foreigners visiting the prefecture in 2015 increased by more than 30 percent over the previous year. "Allowing more foreign visitors to come to Tibet can help the locals out of poverty by getting them involved in providing tourism services."
With 20 million Chinese visiting the TAR in 2015, a few foreigners more or less, will not make a difference in term of revenue for the regional government.
But a few 'selected' foreign tourists could make a difference in terms of ‘image’ for the Party's propaganda.

The Sichuan-Tibet Railway 
Regarding the new railway line between Lhasa and Chengdu, already reported on this blog, Padma Choling promised that “Tibet's environment will not be damaged by the construction of a second railroad linking the remote area to the rest of China.”
He affirmed:

Tibet is a highly sensitive spot, not just because of continued opposition by many Tibetans to Chinese control, but because of its strategic location next to neighbors India, Myanmar and Nepal. …The ecological environment of Tibet will not be harmed. The railway will be well built under the condition of environmental protection. That is for sure.

Reuters presented the other side of the coin: “Exiled Tibetans and rights groups also say the first railway has spurred an influx of long-term migrants who threaten Tibetans' cultural integrity, tied to Buddhist beliefs and a traditional herding lifestyle.”
All this is of course denied by Beijing.

India is concerned
India is however concerned by the proximity of the line (this was discussed 2 years ago on this blog) from the McMahon Line.
Padma Choling rejected such fears: “No matter whether it takes 15 hours, or however long, to reach the border, the border belongs to our motherland," he added: "We Tibetans have the responsibility to guard it well."
Lobsang Gyaltsen, the TAR Chairman and No 3 in the Party hierarchy in Tibet affirmed that the planned Sichuan-Tibet railway will help bring more tourists and opportunities to Tibet.
During the annual session of the TAR Regional People's Congress in January, he had declared that “China will accelerate the construction of the 1,629-kilometer Sichuan-Tibet railway” and that it should start in 2016.
In fact it has started more than a year ago.
According to the region's 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20), nearly 1,000 km of it will be laid in Tibet; the construction of the western and the eastern sections began last year.
The whole project is expected to be completed in the early 2030s:

Perched at over 3,000 meters above sea level and with more than 74 percent of its length running on bridges or in tunnels, the railway will meander through the mountains, the highest of which is over 7,000 meters above sea level, says The China Daily.

Gyaltsen noted that the Sichuan-Tibet railway will significantly improve people's livelihoods along its route.
As mentioned in an earlier post, soon 100 million Chinese will soon travel to the Roof on the World every year.

India's borders
More disturbing, Tibet will now streamline the procedure for Chinese people applying for passes to visit border areas: “Tibet shares a border of more than 4,000 kilometers with countries including India, Nepal and Burma. More trade routes will be built between Tibet and its neighbors in the future,” says the China Daily.
What does it mean?
Tourists will be allowed to visit the LAC in Ladakh and the border in Himachal or the McMahon Line in Arunachal?

New Ximania
Another topic: all the NPC’s deputies from the TAR each wore two badges when they attended the opening session of the legislature on March 5.
Internet users always quick to react; they commented that it looks like “a return to the cult of personality crafted by Mao and employed during the violent Culture Revolution.”
According to the Caixin newspaper: “One badge showed a smiling Xi Jinping, head of the Communist Party, talking to a Tibetan woman. The other showed the busts of Xi and his four predecessors as top leaders of the party and country, Mao, Deng Xiaoping, Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao. The [Chinese] flag of China appears in the background of the second badge.”
Kelsang, a deputy from Lhasa explained that the delegates “got the badges last year on the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Tibetan Autonompus Region”. They apparently kept them preciously since the.
Kelsang said the deputies decided to wear the round pins at this year's ‘Two Sessions’. She added that the delegates wanted to wear the pins to show their gratitude to the party's top leaders for the changes made in Tibet.
Kelsang praised the Party and said: “Posters similar to the two badges are now hanging in every office, home and public squares in Tibet."
Caixin remarked that the badges are similar “to ones worn during the Cultural Revolution, [it was] a reminder of a period that saw the country brought to the brink of collapse.”
Someone on Sina Weibo, China's Twitter noted that China has moved since then "We should never allow the worship of an individual to become a fashion again," he wrote.
Another blogger commented: “If they are not told to stop doing this, other delegates could follow suit next year.”
But ‘Follow Comrade Xi’ if fashionable this season.
How long will it last?
Nobody is sure.

Tibet delegate to the Congress investigated

Chang Xiaobing, another tiger investigated

The South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported today that the Chinese Communist Party graft-busters are investigating China Telecom's chairman, Chang Xiaobing.
The Hong Kong newspaper says that the probe comes 10 months after Chang claimed, on the sidelines of the National People’s Congress in March, that he only took home US$ 1,200 a month (after tax!). Chang was then attending the Congress as a member of the Tibet delegation.
Now, it looks like Chang was taking more than US$ 1,200 a month!
The SCMP notes: “China Telecom chairman Chang Xiaobing is the latest senior official of a state-owned industrial juggernaut to fall from grace in Beijing’s sweeping crackdown on corruption.”
The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, announced in a statement that Chang “was suspected of seriously violating party discipline”, in other words, a case of corruption!
Four months ago, Chang, 58, then chairman and chief executive of China Unicom, had swapped job with Wang Xiaochu, then chairman of China Telecom. It was a major reshuffle at the top of China’s telecom sector.
Two sources told the SCMP that the investigation into Chang’s allegedly corrupt activities relates to his time at Unicom; he had been officiating as Chairman since November 2004.
A few months ago, two Unicom officials, Zhang Zhijiang, a general manager responsible for network construction, and Zong Xinhua, who oversaw e-commerce, had been ‘taken away’ by the CCDI officials, also for allegedly ‘serious violations of discipline’.
At that time, it was reported that some Unicom officials committed a series of wrongdoings, including colluding with vendors to make illegal incomes; taking advantage of their positions to help relatives secure big contracts; and accepting valuable ‘gifts’ such as shares of companies from clients.
Chang Xiaobing is/was a member of the Tibet delegation to the National People’s Congress (with Wang Huning, President Xi Jinping’s faithful confident).
In March 2013, Bloomberg News had reported that China Unicom Hong Kong Ltd., the nation’s second-largest wireless carrier, had announced that its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Chang Xiaobing had joined the National People’s Congress as a member of the Tibet delegation.
Bloomberg then commented: “Chang is not ethnically Tibetan, and China Unicom has no information on why he was chosen for that delegation, Zhou Xiaoke, Unicom’s Hong Kong-based director of investor relations, said... Chang has previously served on the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, which advises the legislature.”
Bloomberg added: “Chang joins the Tibetan delegation at a sensitive time as a rising number of activists from the region are setting themselves on fire to protest Chinese rule. Chang is part of the nation’s ethnic Han majority and is from the northern province of Hebei that surrounds Beijing.”
The reason why Chang was part of the 20-member Tibet delegation (with Wang Huning) is that Xi Jinping wanted the industry to invest on the plateau. Chang was the representative of the industry, like Wang Huning represented the Politburo and Dr. Ding Zhongli of the Chinese Academy of Science represented ‘environment’.
I had mentioned this in March 2013 on this blog.
Coincidentally, Xinhua announced last week that China will continue to offer preferential financial policies to support Tibet for the next five years. Pan Gongsheng, deputy head of the People's Bank of China, urged commercial banks to provide more credit resources for Tibet “while risks are under control.”
Pan stressed the importance of diversifying financial businesses and increasing branches in Tibet, and encouraging qualified capital to establish small institutions like private and village banks.
More direct financing and financial bonds are expected to facilitate enterprises, especially small and micro businesses in Tibet, he said.
In the meantime, Xi Jinping will have to find a replacement for Chang Xiaobing in the Tibet delegation to the National People’s Congress in March.
Why not Jack Ma, who recently bought The South China Morning Post?

Latest:
According to SCMP, China Unicom’s former chairman is said to have sold a state-owned office building in Beijing at 800 million yuan (HK$957 million) below the market price to benefit disgraced former general Guo Boxiong’s family, according to a letter (circulated online) by a mainland credit assessment company.
State-owned telecommunications giant China Unicom in 2011 sold the Beijing China Merchants International Financial Centre to a real estate firm under the control of Guo’s family, the letter said.
The deal resulted in about 800 million yuan worth of losses in state assets as the building was sold at only a third of its market price of 1.2 billion yuan. Other potential buyers, including insurance giant Taikang Life Insurance, had offered much higher prices but were turned down, the letter said.

Tibet: from darkness to light, from dictatorship to democracy, says Party Secretary

Tibet: from darkness to light, from dictatorship to democracy, from backwardness to progress, from poverty to prosperity, says Tibet’s Party Secretary to Nancy Pelosi

Nancy Pelosi, the US House of Representatives Minority Leader took the opportunity of a visit to China (which included a meeting with officials of China’s National People’s Congress), to visit Tibet with a US delegation.
The South China Morning Post reported: “Pelosi, the former House speaker, has been a frequent critic of China’s human rights record, including in the remote Himalayan region where Beijing is accused of suppressing demands for greater religious and cultural freedoms.”
When she was asked about her Tibet trip during a meeting with Zhang Ping, a vice-chairman of the Chinese parliament, her response was not clear.
Zhang queried: "Madame Pelosi you have been to Tibet. I was concerned about your health. I can see there is nothing wrong with your health. This shows your health is very good. I want to first hear your impressions of your visit to Tibet."
Pelosi just answered that she had shared some of her views on Tibet during an earlier meeting, but she made no other comments about her present visit, which had not officially been scheduled.
The main focus of her present visit to Beijing was boosting Sino-US trade ties a well as exchanges with her Chinese interlocutors on cyber security, climate change and human rights.
During a news conference Hong Lei, a Foreign Ministry spokesman, confirmed that Ms. Pelosi and her delegation had gone to Tibet before traveling to Beijing, but he did not give any detail about the Tibet trip.
Knowing her interest for Tibet, she would have been logical that she meets with Jampa Phuntsok, one of the senior most Tibet cadres and also a NPC’s vice-chairman (like Zhang Ping), but the Chinese authorities did not see it that way.
In 2008, Pelosi had declared: “If freedom-loving people throughout the world do not speak out against China’s oppression and China and Tibet, we have lost all moral authority to speak on behalf of human rights anywhere in the world.”
In Lhasa, she met with nearly the entire Standing Committee of the Tibetan Autonomous Region’s (TAR) Regional Congress led by Chen Quanguo, the Party Secretary and Pema Choling, Chairman of the local People's Congress as well as Lobsang Gyaltsen, Chairman of the TAR government and Deng Xiaogang, Deputy Secretary of the Region.
She was accompanied from Beijing by an old US-hand, Chen Guomin presently deputy secretary general of the NPC Standing Committee, who earlier served as Minister in the Chinese Embassy in Washington DC.
Chen Guomin is an old acquaintance; he had already accompanied Pelosi during her 2009 visit to China.
In Lhasa, Pelosi had time to visit the monasteries of Drepung, Ganden, Sera and Ramoche and met with representatives of the monks and nuns, said The Tibet Daily.
According to the same official publication, Chen Quanguo briefly introduced Tibet's social and economic development to his American guest.
Then Chen recited the usual banalities.
He said that since ancient times Tibet is an inalienable part of Chinese territory; he mentioned Tibet's peaceful liberation 60 years ago, under the strong leadership of the Communist Party of China.
He added that since then Tibetan people are their own masters.
He continued: “All ethnic groups in Tibet have embarked in the correct path of socialism with Chinese characteristics: from darkness to light, from dictatorship to democracy, from backwardness to progress, from poverty to prosperity, from closed to open.”
An Upanishadic sermon!
Tibet progressed in just a few decades more than in thousand years; this has brought earth-shaking changes to the region, especially since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China [in November 2012], under the strong leadership of the General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee, Comrade Xi Jinping and the selfless support of the people [of China].
During these years affirmed Chen, Tibet has witnessed “the united struggle of people of all nationalities, rapid economic development with an overall social harmony stable, peoples’ solidarity, religious harmony Buddhist, continuous improvement of people's lives, and maintenance of a good ecological environment.”
The Party Secretary told Pelosi: “The Fifth Plenary Session of the Communist Party of China's 18th Congress [held in October], has prepared a beautiful blueprint [for the future]. The Sixth Work Forum on Tibet [held in September] has pointed out the right direction; it has provided great support for the Tibetan people for a better future.
Chen said that he sincerely hopes that Ms. Nancy Pelosi through her visit will further deepen her understanding of Tibet, with truth as an objective and that after her visit the prosperous and harmonious socialist new Tibet will be made known to the American public and the people of the world.
This is of course, the Chinese version of the situation in Tibet.
The reality is different, very different.
The visit will probably not change anything on the ground.
It is a pity that Nancy Pelosi could not meet any of the two Panchen Lamas recognized by the Dalai Lama (Gedhun Choekyi Nyima) and Beijing (Gyaltsen Norbu).
It would have made her trip more educative.

The next Dalai Lama, handpicked by China?

My article The next Dalai Lama, handpicked by China? appeared in the Edit Page of The Pioneer.

Here is the link...

According to Beijing, it is for the Communist Party of China to ‘decide’ on the incumbent Dalai Lama’s successor. The process and the result can be farcical, as has been the case with the Panchen Lama

A topic which was not on the agenda of Indian National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and his Chinese counterpart State Councilor Yang Jiechi, the Special Representatives for the Indo-China Boundary issue, but which is at the core of the relations between the 2 countries is the future of the Dalai Lama’s institution after the demise of the Tibetan leader.
After their meeting, earlier this week, Xinhua reported: “China and India agreed to properly handle and control their disputes and jointly safeguard peace and tranquility in their border regions before the boundary issue is solved,” however, no word about the Dalai Lama.
It was different during China's 12th National People's Congress (NPC) recently held in Beijing. During a press conference, Padma Choling, the senior-most Tibetan official objected to the Dalai Lama’s earlier announcement saying that ‘his traditional religious role should cease with his death’.
Choling, who is Chairman of the Tibet Autonomous Regional (TAR) People's Congress, created a flutter when he declared: “it's not up to the Dalai Lama to decide [about his own reincarnation].”
He added that the process: “should follow strict historical conventions …and be approved by the central government.” Yes, according to Beijing, it is for the Communist Party of China to ‘decide’ who will be the next Dalai Lama.
How will the Communist Party choose the next Dalai Lama?
It is not difficult to guess, if you read a book ‘Surviving the Dragon: A Tibetan Lama's Account of 40 Years under Chinese Rule’ written by a Tibetan Lama, now in exile in the US, who was part of the great tamasha for the ‘selection’ of a new Panchen Lama in 1995.
The Lama, Arjia Rinpoche was the Abbot of the Kumbum monastery in today’s Qinghai Province before escaping from China.
Soon after the Tenth Panchen Lama passed away under mysterious circumstances while on a visit to Tibet, the Chinese government formed a ‘search team’ under Gyayak Rinpoche, the Panchen Lama’s religious teacher. Chadrel Rinpoche, abbot of the Panchen Lama’s Tashi Lhunpo Monastery and Arjia Rinpoche were to assist the old Lama. Arjia remembers: “The Chinese government trusted Chadrel Rinpoche to do their bidding.”
But soon after Gyayak’s demise, the scenario changed; Beijing discovered that Chadrel Rinpoche was secretly in contact with the Dalai Lama in India to find a ‘consensus’ candidate. In early November 1995, events accelerated and an emergency meeting was called in Beijing to ‘clarify’ the Communist Party’s position.
According to Kumbum’s former Abbot: “This was when I learned that Chadrel Rinpoche had been arrested. …[then] we were bombarded with statements like ‘We must not allow the Dalai's separatist clique to interfere in the Golden Urn Ceremony’. Though not spelled out, the message was clear: His Holiness [the Dalai Lama] would not be involved in the selection process, and the Golden Urn Ceremony would be the method of choice.”
The following day, another meeting took place to which Jamyang Shepa, abbot of Labrang-Tashi Kyil monastery, Bumi Rinpoche, a Lama from the TAR and Arjia participated. Ying Kesheng, the Party Secretary of Qinghai Province was also present.
The rinpoches had no other choice but to accept Beijing’s decision: “The meeting was swift and efficient. That same afternoon, central TV aired footage of the meeting throughout China and the rest of the world,” says Arjia Rinpoche.
Soon after, another meeting was called “for determining the reincarnation of the Panchen Lama using the Golden Urn Ceremony.”
It was to be held in the Jokhang Cathedral in Lhasa: “We landed at Gonggar airport in Lhasa, which was tightly guarded by People's Liberation Army soldiers and armed policemen. …Soldiers were lined up along the entire route ‘for our protection’.”
At the hotel, the Lamas saw ‘squads of PLA soldiers’ with machine guns surrounding the hotel ‘so that nobody could slip in or out’.
The Communist officials told the rinpoches:" If a separatist clique [i.e. followers of the Dalai Lama] attempts any disruption of the [Golden Urn] ceremony, you will be protected …and if any among you support or participate in any such attempt, we will punish you without mercy."
The message was loud and clear.
The ceremony was held on November 29, 1995, at 2 am in the morning in Jokhang: “Although the night was dark, again we could see soldiers in their heavy bulletproof vests every few steps along the deserted streets. …we saw undercover policemen standing in every corner and shadow.”
Arjia Rinpoche continues the narration of the dramatic event: “In front of the statue of Sakyamuni Buddha was a large table covered with a yellow silk cloth. Alone on the table stood a golden urn about 15 inches high, surrounded by seated high officials.”
Luo Gan, a State Counselor (who later became a member of the Politburo’s Standing Committee) and Gyaltsen Norbu (the then TAR governor) were present.
Then the Ceremony began: “Inside the gold urn was a small case, which contained three ivory lots with cloud scrolls etched at one end. The names of the three candidates were written on three separate pieces of paper and pasted to the ivory sticks. …The three ivory lots were placed into the Golden Urn.”
Bumi Rinpoche, who had been appointed Ganden Tripa (throne holder of the Yellow School) by Beijing, drew the lot. The Communist ‘puja’ was swiftly performed: Bumi handed a yellow pouch to Luo Gan for verification, the latter handed it to the Governor.
The name of the ‘selected’ candidate was Gyaltsen Norbu, like the Governor: “Gyaltsen Norbu chose Gyaltsen Norbu. The government chose itself as Panchen Lama,” a joke later circulated.
But the tamasha was not over. As you read on, you will understand how the next Dalai Lama can be selected.
After Gyaltsen Norbu’s enthronement in Tashi Lhunpo, Arjia Rinpoche returned to Beijing by plane. He and Jamyang Shepa were called in a private cabin by Li Tieying, a Central minister and Ye Xiaowen, the director of the Bureau of Religious Affairs in Beijing: “Both of them looked especially pleased with themselves. Li Tieying placed the event in the context of great moments in China's history.”
Ye Xiaowen then revealed the shocking secret: “When we made our selection we left nothing to chance. In the silk pouches of the ivory pieces we put a bit of cotton at the bottom of one of them, so it would be a little higher than the others and the right candidate would be chosen.”
That was the way ‘with Chinese characteristics’.
Twenty years later, Gedun Choekyi Nyima, selected by the Dalai Lama as the Panchen Lama is still under house arrest, somewhere in China.
There is no doubt that the selection of the next Dalai Lama will be done in the same manner, if Beijing is allowed to have its way.
A tragic farce indeed!

Wang Qishan drops by at Tibet Meet

Left to right: Padma Choling, Jampa Phuntsok, Wang Qishan,
Wang Huning, Chen Quanguo, Lobsang Gyaltsen

A few days before the opening of the yearly grand messe, aka the National People’s Congress (NPC), China Tibet Online speculated: “You may wonder what China’s top leader will say [this year] about Tibet?”
The website affiliated to Xinhua answered by quoting the previous interventions of President Xi Jinping, when he met with the Tibet Delegation at the NPC in 2013 and 2014.

According to the website:
On March 9, 2013, attending a discussion held by the NPC’s Tibet Delegation, Xi Jinping stressed the need to "unswervingly consolidate ethnic unity and create a long-term mechanism to ensure such unity is upheld".
Xi further spoke of its strategy for ‘comprehensively building a moderately prosperous society’.
On March 4, 2014, Xi Jinping attended a meeting involving ethnic minorities of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), China’s political advisory body. He emphasized that terrorism must be fought according to law in order to consolidate ethnic unity, social stability and national unification. The message was probably addressed to Xinjiang.
Yu Zhengsheng met the Tibet delegation on March 10, 2014.
China Tibet Online concluded: “The above provides some clues as to what one can expect of Xi Jinping regarding Tibet during the Two Sessions”.

Wang Qishan arrives in the Tibet 'room'

The 2015 Two Sessions
The Chinese government's work report (something like the State of the Union in the US) delivered by the Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, during the Third Session of the 12th National People's Congress included some ‘highlights’ about the Tibetan-inhabited areas (note that the Chinese Premier did not refer to the Tibetan Autonomous Region alone, but to all the ‘Tibetan-inhabited areas’. This remains one of the main bones of contention between the Dalai Lama’s Administration in Dharamsala and Beijing).
Li Keqiang affirmed that Beijing would like:

• To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the founding the Tibet Autonomous Region
• To protect the source of the three major rivers - the Yangtze, Yellow and Lancang [Mekong] River in Qinghai Province
• To adhere to the policy of Regional Ethnic Autonomy
• To protect the intangible cultural heritage and the rich resources that Tibet boasts of

The 'deliberations'

This year, the Tibet delegation did not get the CPC’s General Secretary’s visit, but the all-powerful Wang Qishan, the supreme boss of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection’s (CCDI) and member of the Standing Committee of the CPC’s politburo, paid a visit to the Tibet delegation and ‘participated in the deliberations’.
Xinhua (Chinese language) published a report.
On March 12 at 3 pm, Wang Qishan entered the room allotted to Tibet in the Great Hall of the People. He was received by some Tibetan delegates (Pub Tsering, Sonam Phuntsok and two monks) with a khata (ceremonial scarf) and escorted to the meeting room.
Here is rough translation of the article on Wang’s visit.
Wang Qishan participated in the deliberations of the second session of the Tibet delegation to the NPC meet.
A photo appeared along with the article. It shows Wang surrounded by Wang Huning (director of the Central Policy Research; member, politburo and close confidant of Xi Jinping), Jampa Phuntsok (Vice-Chairman, NPC's Standing Committee), Chen Quanguo (Tibet’s Party Secretary), Padma Choling (Chairman, TAR’s regional Congress), Lobsang Gyaltsen (head of the TAR’s government) and Wu Yingjie (Party’s Deputy Secretary).

According to Xinhua:
After listening to Qiangba (Jampa Phuntsok), Lobsang Gyaltsen, and other representatives, Wang pointed out that the pursuit of wealth and civilization is the eternal quest in the history of human development.
The CPC's ‘two hundred years’ goal is to meet the people's growing material and cultural needs. You should maintain close ties between the Party and the masses; you should strengthen national unity and safeguard the stability of the society, he said.
Party members and cadres should not forget the party's fine tradition and [work?] style; you should keep serving the people wholeheartedly and never mind having close ties with the masses. Implement the spirit of the eight provisions [?] with perseverance; improve your [life] style; this is a solemn commitment of the Party Central Committee; it is the ardent desire of the masses.
Correct the 'Four Winds': it is a struggle one cannot afford to lose; if we do, we will lose the trust of the people, causing in turn greater damage to the Party.
Wang said that the new word cannot forget the old word, improve your style.
Chen Quanguo presided over the meeting. He said that Wang Qishan’s speech was important as it provided China with an overall strategic focus, and helped thinking deeply. As for Tibet, according to Chen, Wang reaffirmed the importance of the development work for the future and this, under a stable and honest government.
At first sight, nothing very exciting or new in Wang's words, except for his insistence of the 'fine tradition of the Party' and the life style of its members.
Interestingly, Wang Qishan did not mention the new theory of Xi Jinping, ‘The Four Comprehensives’. Does it mean that it is not agreed by all in the Politburo?
It may be an issue, because The South China Morning Post reported “an apparent slip in the rhetoric led to a tough question about President Xi Jinping's political theory: quite how many ‘comprehensives’ are involved in the so-called ‘Four Comprehensives’ theory?”.
The Hong Kong newspaper explained: “The answer's not so obvious. …Yet surprisingly, copies of the work report of Premier Li Keqiang for delegates and the press contained no reference to ‘strict enforcement of discipline in the party’ [the forth comprehensive].”
One comprehensive was missing in action. The ‘error’ was later rectified.
During his speech to the Tibet delegation, Wang did not mention any ‘comprehensives’ (it would be very surprising, if he had mentioned it and it had not been reported,).
Why Wang and not Xi Jinping or Yu Zhengsheng (who usually monitors the United Front Work and 'drop by' last year) visited the Tibet delegation?
Perhaps a question of heavy schedule!
But it could also be that Wang’s visit to the Tibet Delegation is a prelude to a more active role of the CCDI in Tibet, in the months to come. In which case, some heads will roll down.
It is not easy to answer this question too.
The presence of Wang Huning, who is a member of the 'Tibet' delegation (don't ask me why!) is interesting, due to his closeness with Xi Jinping.
Last point, the Dalai Lama’s name was apparently not mentioned. It might be a sign of ‘softening’, but softening …with Chinese characteristics, which often translates into ‘no softening at all’.