‘Tibet’ Tiger’s Heads are Rolling

General Wang Jianping in Tibet in 2014

Reuters reported that General Wang Jianping has been placed “under investigation on suspicion of taking bribes.”
According to the news agency, it is the “first incumbent senior military official to be targeted in the China’s anti-graft campaign.”
The information was confirmed by the spokesperson of the Ministry of National Defence (MND).
At the time of his arrest, General Wang was deputy chief of the Joint Staff Department under the Central Military Commission.
Yang Yujun, the MND's spokesman (recently promoted Senior Colonel) announced during his monthly press conference that Wang was “under probe by military prosecutors”.
I had mentioned this in August (the news had then leaked to The South China Morning Post).
Wang is the first full general in service to be investigated since President Xi Jinping launched his crackdown on corruption in 2012.
Wang earlier served as Commander of the 1.2-million-strong People’s Armed Police Force (PAPF); before that he was posted in Tibet for several years.

Gen Wang's return to Tibet in 2014
In June 2014, I mentioned that he visited Lhasa, his old fiefdom, as PAPF Commander.
Wang inspected the TAR PAP’s training camp, a traffic police detachment, Tibet’s Forest Armed Police Corps, the 117 Police Division and a detachment of Ngari Police. According to The Tibet Daily, he wanted to get a detailed understanding of the situation.
The Chinese newspapers reported that Wang Jianping acknowledged the success achieved by the Armed Police's Tibet Corps and the Armed Police Forces and asked all the armed police officers and men to understand the serious and complicated situation that Tibet is facing. He told them to strengthen the police force for war preparation and continue the good job of building up (the police forces).
Gen Wang also asked the Force to ensure the completion of every task, giving first priority to the tasks that need to be dealt with urgently, providing a strong support for Tibet’s continuous stability, long term stability and comprehensive stability.
‘Stability’ was and is the main priority in Tibet.
Walking to the Potala Palace Square’s Police Station, Gen Wang said that the police should understand the ‘Tibet’ work; for example, the duty of the Police Station, the range of service, the promotion the urban grid management.



Other heads is rolling
Yesterday, it was also announced that China had decided to prosecute for graft, a former ‘senior spy catcher’: “Ma Jian, once a vice minister at China's Ministry of State Security, is the most senior security official to be investigated since former domestic security tsar Zhou Yongkang was ensnared in a graft scandal and jailed for life last year.”
More interestingly, as far as the ‘Tibet’ Tigers’ heads are concerned, Le Dake, who headed of the State Security Department in Tibet from 2004 to 2013, has been found guilty of bribery.
It was announced in a statement posted on the official microblog account of the Zhengzhou City Intermediate People's Court. Zhengzhou is located in central China's Henan Province.
Reuters said “It was not possible to reach Le or a representative for comment.”
Obviously!
Quoting the Court, Xinhua noted that Le was fined 2 million yuan ($290,000) “and his illegal gains shall be recovered and turned over to the State treasury.”
Le Dake was a deputy director of the Standing Committee of the Tibet Autonomous Regional People's Congress. He had taken advantage of “various official posts from 2005 to 2014 to seek benefits for others in project contracting and official promotions and reassignment.”
The amount of bribe is said to be over 18.7 million yuan.
The Court showed leniency “as Le confessed to his crimes, expressed remorse and voluntarily returned his illegal gains.”
Le Dake had become infamous in Tibet when he organized the repression on a large scale after the unrest on the plateau in the Spring of 2008 (at the time of the Olympics Games in Beijing).
The Epoch Times, a publication of the Falun Gong group had reported in July 2015: “A leading official in the administrative region of Tibet, who was formerly the most powerful security official there before becoming deputy of the legislature, was purged recently.”
The newspaper noted that the Central Committee for Discipline Inspection “didn’t go into the specifics of Le’s case …But overseas Chinese news websites, attuned to the subtleties of political struggle in China, noted Le’s deep and long-standing ties with the notorious Zeng Qinghong, the well-known henchman of former Party leader Jiang Zemin.”
The case against Le Dake would have been linked with General Yang Jinshan, a former commander of the Party’s military forces in Tibet (and later Deputy Commander of the Chengdu Military Region): “Yang, in turn was a client of [General] Xu Caihou, formerly one of the most powerful men in the military who was purged and died last year.”
Duowei, a Chinese news company remarked: “Le’s removal seemed sudden, since he was seen going about his normal routine just two days before anti-corruption investigators made their move. Le had been in the regime’s public security apparatus for almost his entire career. He started as a public security officer in the provincial branch in Jiangxi, and eventually headed Tibet’s public security department until 2012.”
Le hails from a village in Jiangxi province, which is located near Zeng Qinghong’s own village: it how Le started his career under Zeng’s patronage in Jiangxi.
According to Bowen Press, an independent publishing house based in Texas, “The suppression of the Tibetan independence movement by the local public security bureau was the most severe during Le’s tenure as public security chief.”
One question remains: what happened to Lt Gen Yang Jinshan, the other bid ‘Tibet’ Tiger whose head also rolled?


The Fate of the Generals
Exactly a year ago I wrote: “Fate is strange. It is especially true in Communist China. In 2014, Lt Gen Yang Jinshan, a former Commander of the Tibet Military District of the Chengdu Military Region (MR) was a rising star in the PLA and the CPC.
He had been promoted as a member of the Party's Central Committee, which was not the case of his direct boss, General Li Zuocheng, the commander of the Chengdu Military Region.
Yang was therefore 'senior' to his boss, Li Zuocheng, in the Party hierarchy.
Today, Yang Jinshan is languishing jail, being 'investigated' and his boss Gen Li Zuocheng is tipped to become the first chief of a newly-formed land force command.
What a reversal of fate!
The courts have not announced as yet the fate of General Yang, while General Wang and Le Dake have now been informed where they will spend the next decade.


The case of Pema Thinley
Incidentally, two senior Tibetan cadres have been demoted during the last reshuffle of the Party’s Standing Committee of the Tibetan Autonomous Region.
Pema Thinley (or Choeling) the senior most Tibetan in the Party and lonely Tibetan member of the Central Committee is no more Deputy Secretary of the TAR, though he remains Chairman of the Regional Congress.
The second Tibetan head to roll was Gonpo Tashi’s, an influential Tibetan, who was the boss of the regional United Front Department. What happened to him is not clear.
And as I mentioned in a previous post, PLA officers have no place anymore in the Party’s regional Standing Committee of the TAR.
Quite a revolution!

A bad chess player: Wang Jianping arrested

Two years ago on this blog, I quoted General Wang Jianping, Commander of the People’s Armed Police Force (PAPF) as saying that “a good chess player always takes the initiative.”
While on a visit to Tibet in June 2014, he asked the PAPF to provide a strong support for “Tibet’s continuous stability, long term stability and comprehensive stability” (he borrowed these words from Xi Jinping).
While visiting the Potala Palace Square, Wang Jianping cordially “greeted the officers and men on duty, encouraged everybody to stand guard for the Party and the people and to be on alert.”
It was ominous.
Walking to the Potala Square’s Police Station, Wang Jianping said that the police should understand in detail the nature of the work in Tibet; for example, the duty of the Police Station, the range of service and  ...the dreadful the urban grid management.
According to The Tibet Daily, Gen Wang had come to Tibet to get a better understanding of the situation on the plateau, though he already knew Tibet well, having a few years earlier, commanded the local PAPF on the plateau,
The Chinese newspapers then reported that Wang Jianping acknowledged the success achieved by the Armed Police's Tibet Corps and the Armed Police Forces and asked the armed police officers and men to understand the serious and complicated situation facing Tibet.
He also told them to strengthen the police force for war preparation.

Wang Arrested
According to The South China Morning Post (SCMP), he has now been arrested “for violating party discipline, a euphemism for corruption.”
While he was on an inspection trip, he was taken away to Chengdu in Sichuan province, along with his wife and military secretary. The SCMP adds: “His former secretary Su Haihui, deputy director of the armed police’s training department, was also taken.”
The SCMP comments: “Wang is the first general still in active military service to be brought down since President Xi Jinping launched his massive crackdown against deep-rooted corruption in the military in 2013. He is the second top general to be arrested for corruption in recent weeks.”
Obviously Wang, the chess player, did the wrong move.
He chose a bad King, former Security Tsar and member of the Politburo’s Standing Committee, Zhou Yongkang, himself behind the bars.

General Wang Jianping
Wang was born in Fushun, Liaoning province. He joined the military in 1969, and first served on the artillery force under the 40th Group Army.
In 1992, he became commander of the 120th Division of the 40th Group Army.
Thereafter he entered the People's Armed Police (PAP).
In 1996, he became head of the People's Armed Police contingent in Tibet.
In June 2009, he was promoted deputy commander of the PAPF and later in June 2012, PAPF commander.
In December 2014, he was transferred back to the PLA to become deputy chief of joint staff. It was obviously a demotion.
In January 2015, Wang became deputy head of a coordinating group on military training.
He was also a member of the 18th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China.

General Zhao Zongqi: from Tibet to the CMC

Chairman Xi meets the old CMC and new commanders

Yesterday, President Xi Jinping announced the reorganization of the four PLA military headquarters or departments - staff, political, logistics and armaments - into 15 new agencies which will directly work under the Central Military Commission (CMC).
Xi Jinping, who also CMC Chairman, met the new bosses of each unit.
He described the reshuffle as ‘a breakthrough’ and ‘a crucial step’ toward a stronger military.
Xi added that all the military leaders should adhere to the Party spirit, obey political discipline, and be politically intelligent (sic)!
Xi urged the new leaders to ‘frequently, actively and resolutely’ align their direction with the CPC Central Committee and the CMC.
As mentioned earlier on this blog, the seven Military Area Commands are being replaced by five Combat Zones, primarily focusing on 'combat'.
The new Western Combat Zone will replace the two Military Area Commands today facing India in the High Himalaya (Chengdu and Lanzhou).
According to The South China Morning Post, General Zhao Zongqi will command the Western Combat Zone.
I re-posting an old piece on General Zhao.
That was a good prediction.
General Zhao should automatically become member of the CMC.

Here are the 15 New Units of the CMC

1. General Office
2. Joint General Staff
3. Political Work Department
4. Logistical Support Department
5. Equipment Development Department
6. Training Management Department
7. Military Defense Mobilization Department
8. Discipline Inspection Commission
9. Politics and Law Commission
10. Science and Technology  Commission
11. Strategic Planning Office
12. Reform and Establishment Office
13. International Military Cooperation Office
14. Auditing Administration Office
15. Administration Affairs Management Office

General Zhao Zhongqi

General Zhao Zongqi: from Tibet to the CMC?
July 24, 2015
A couple of years ago, I wrote a piece The Chinese who matter in Tibetan Affairs. Since then, several officials who ‘mattered’ have lost their job or have disappeared from the Chinese political scene.
The prime case is of course Ling Jihua, who from 2007 to 2012 served under President Hu Jintao, as Director of the General Office of the CPC Central Committee and in 2012, became Head of the United Front Work Department, dealing with Tibet among other subjects.
His son's car accident (with two Tibetan girls) signaled the beginning of his downfall.
Jia is now investigated for six violations of law and Communist Party discipline, including taking bribes, adultery and illegally acquiring a large number of ‘core secrets’ of the State and Party. It is what a Politburo statement, relayed by Xinhua, said.
The South China Morning Post rightly says: “The accusation that Ling illegally obtained the secrets surprised some observers, who said he was supposedly entitled to access to the information”.
This is one of the mysteries of Chinese politics.
Another Chinese who matters(ed) is/was General Wang Jianping, a member of the 18th CCP Central Committee. In 2009, he became Commander of the Chinese People's Armed Police Force with a bigger budget than the PLA.
His name has often been mentioned on this blog. (A good chess player takes the initiative?)
Apparently, in January 2015 Wang was ‘transferred’ as deputy head of a coordinating group on military training; it is obviously a great fall.
Interestingly on July 17, The Hong Kang Oriental Daily published an article on the military leadership changes in China. It was titled, “Three Phenomenon at the Center of Army Restructuring.”
It was later republished in the Mainland under a different title, “Xi Jinping’s Big Move: Jiang Zemin’s Closest Army Allies Are No longer in Power.”
The article says that Xi has assigned several senior military generals to insignificant positions: "Over the last six months, those in the most important leadership positions in the armed forces have all been replaced. Those officials who were close to Xi were promoted."
Wang Jianping is one clearly one of those who lost their seat.
Another powerful figure who has disappeared from my list is Lieutenant General Yang Jinshan. In October 2014, I wrote about The Fall of a Powerful General.
After serving as Commander of the Tibet Military Area, in June 2013, General Yang was transferred (on promotion) to Chengdu as a Deputy Commander of the Chengdu Military Region. He was one of the rising stars in the PLA
His fall is probably related to Xu Caihou’s case.
He was even demoted from the Party's Central Committee.
And there is also the case of Le Dake, the head of External Intelligence in Tibet. A few weeks ago, Reuters had reported that the former top Chinese security official in Tibet was being investigated ‘for suspected graft’.
The news agency explained that it is “a rare example of corruption busters going into the restive and remote region.”

The new rising star: General Zhao Zongqi
While some officials have sunk into oblivion, some are rising very fast.
It is the case of the Jinan Military Region’s Commander, Lieutenant General Zhao Zongqi, who, earlier in his career spent 20 years in Tibetan Military District.
Recently, General Zhao went on an inspection trip with General Fan Changlong.  
The South China Morning Post reported: “A top leader from the Jinan military area command accompanied Fan Changlong, vice-chairman of the powerful Central Military Commission, on an inspection trip to the northwest, raising speculation over a personnel reshuffle.”
According to The PLA Daily, Lieutenant General Zhao Zongqi accompanied Fan to inspect garrisons in Gansu, Xinjiang and Ningxia.
The article says that “Zhao, 60, is the youngest commander among top leaders from the key military areas. He is also one of a handful of senior military officials who took part in China's border conflicts with Vietnam in the late 1970s.”
His long stint in Tibet is not mentioned.
However, the Chinese press parried: “The pairing of the two [Fan and Zhao] on the trip fueled speculation over whether Zhao would be promoted to even higher rank.”
'Higher rank' can only mean 'Central Military Commission'.
Last year, I mentioned on this blog a high level tour of General Fan Changlong in Tibet. He was then accompanied by three Military Region Commanders (Lt. Gen. Liu Yuejun, commander of the Lanzhou Military Region, General Li Shiming, Commander, Chengdu Military Region and Lt. Gen. Zhao Zongqi, Commander, Jinan Military Region).
I then wondered what was the Jinan MR Commander was doing there.
This was soon after the Chumur incident in Ladakh during the visit of President Xi Jinping in India.
I then wrote: “The main purpose of General Fan's Tibet tour was most likely to convince the PLA officers that they should follow Xi Jinping in his crusade against corrupt officers.”
At that time, Xinhua reported that General Fan told the army to firmly obey the command of President Xi Jinping and the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee.
China's senior-most general told the troops that “the army and the armed police should resolutely implement the strategies made by the CPC Central Committee and Xi, also the CMC Chairman, and uphold the correct decisions to investigate Zhou Yongkang and punish Xu Caihou.”
To follow the orders of Chairman Xi was important, said Fan; the defence forces should implement the instructions by achieving ‘Four [questions] to Ask’.
One of the ‘Four to Ask’ was “To ask oneself whether one follows the correct guiding ideology in training, whether the practices followed are correct to [avoid] other negative phenomena [i.e. corruption?]”.
Apparently General Zhao got it right; he probably answered the question the correct way.
As the result, he may soon be the first Chinese ‘Tibet hand’ reaching the PLA’s Heaven (the Central Military Commission).

Mondays for flies, Christmas for tigers in the PLA

Wang Jianping behind Chairman Xi Jinping

The South China Morning Post last week asserted that the 'big changes' in China always occurred in Friday or Saturday: "For the past two years it has been accepted – almost as a rule of thumb – among China’s media and interested mainlanders that Fridays and weekends are the likely time for senior officials to fall from grace over allegations of corruption. Yet few observers could tell why – until now."
The Hong Kong newspaper added: "People have described the pattern as 'Mondays for flies, Weekends for tigers' ever since President Xi Jinping launched his anti-graft campaign against both low-level officials and those in the most senior roles."
The 'big change' for the PLA Tigers has happened on the Christmas day.
Want China Times, the news website based in Taiwan has announced the replacement of 40 senior commanders of China's armed forces. The Taiwanese paper reported: "China's president, Xi Jinping, has replaced 40 senior military commanders including the head of the People's Armed Police according to a new nomination list posted by a Chinese internet user."
It added: "Communist Party of China on June, Xi has continued his purge of PLA generals whose loyalty to him may be questionable. The nomination list released on Dec. 20 suggests that various key positions within the Chinese military will be taken over by Xi's close associates."
Apart from Lt. Gens. Qin Weijiang, Hu Yishu and Li Shangfu nominated as the deputy chiefs of the General Staff, General Logistics and General Equipment departments respectively, Lt. Gens. Yin Fanglong and Miao Hua were named as the political commissars of the Second Artillery Corps and Navy, while Lt. Gens.Wang Weiming and Wang Dengping are to be the deputy commanders and deputy political commissars of the PLA Navy. Lt. Gen. Zhang Junxiang and Zhou Yaning will now served as the Second Artillery Corps' new deputy commanders.

Wang Jianping, commander of the People's Armed Police
More interestingly to me is the fate of Lt. Gen. Wang Jianping, who has apparently lost his job to Wang Ning, a deputy chief of general staff of the PLA.
I have often mentioned Wang Jiangping's name on his blog, mainly because he was an old Tibet-hand.
A few words about his career:

Wang Jianping (Han nationality) is a native of Hebei province. He was born in 1953, joined the Army in 1969. In 1997, he was promoted to major general; he became lieutenant general in 2007. He served as deputy commander for one year before becoming Commander of the Chinese People's Armed Police Force (PAPF) in 2009. He is a member of the 18th CCP Central Committee.
He has also been a member of the Central Working Coordination Small Group on Tibet. He served as Commander of the Tibet Autonomous Region's (TAR) PAPF from 1996 to 2000. He knows Tibet well and particularly the Ngari region.

When Wang visited Tibet in June 2014, the TAR's entire Standing Committee was in attendance to receive him.
I then wrote in detail about his visit.
While in Lhasa,he inspected the TAR’s People’s Armed Police training base, a Traffic police detachment, Tibet’s Forest Armed Police Corps, the 117 Police Division, a detachment of Ngari Police.
According to The Tibet Daily, he wanted to get a detailed understanding of the situation. For the purpose, he called on officers and men of the People’s Armed Police.
The Chinese newspapers reported that Wang Jianping acknowledged the success achieved by the Armed Police's Tibet Corps and the Armed Police Forces in every work and asked all the armed police officers and men to understand the serious and complicated situation that they are facing at present. He told the local Party cadres to strengthen the police force for war preparation and continue the good job of building up the police forces.
He said a good chess player takes the initiative.
Well, he was probably too close to Zhou Yongkang, the former member of the Politburo's Standing Committee, who is now 'investigated'.
That was not a good move on the chessboard for Wang.

Will his transfer bring a change in Tibet where the self-immolations continue?
We will have to wait several months to see.
Just before the 'reshuffle' in the PLA, Senior Colonel Yang Yujun, the spokesman of the Ministry of National Defense addressed his regular monthly press conference in Beijing. When asked:

India and China on the military front had a very eventful year this year. There are several interactions at various levels and they have dealt with several issues of differences over the line of actual control. What is the outlook for the next year? Are there any new exchanges in the pipeline? Can you give some details on how you see the next year coming?

He answered:

This year is the year of friendly exchange between China and India. There are several important cooperation programs between the two militaries. For example, there have been frequent exchanges of high-level military delegations. Both sides held defense consultations and joint counter-terrorism Army training. At the same time, neighboring military commands as well as the border defense troops of the two sides conducted meetings and regular exchanges. Both sides also properly handled issues of encounter at the line of actual control and maintained peace and stability in the China-India border.
Next year, the Chinese and Indian militaries will continue to strengthen dialogue, exchange and cooperation, and push forward bilateral military relationship. In particular, we should focus our attention on the implementation of the Border Defense Cooperation Agreement signed by the two governments and ensure peace and stability along the China-India border.
On the specific exchange programs of the two militaries for the next year, both sides are still in the process of discussion.

To focus on the implementation of the Border Defense Cooperation Agreement' does not mean that there will no Chinese intrusions on Indian soil in 2015, he just signifies: "we will tackle these issues through the Border Agreement."
In the meantime, the 'training' of the different units based on the plateau continues.
According to The PLA Daily: "a battalion successfully conducted a tactical drill at the foot of Mount Tanggula in Tibet on Dec. 20, 2014. It’s a great challenge for soldiers to complete missions in the severe cold of a 5000-meter-high plateau."
Tangulla or Tangkha is located at the border between Qinghai Province and Nagchu Prefecture of the TAR. It is important railway station (the highest in the world?) midway between Xining and Lhasa.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Developing Western Tibet, China secures its border with India

The two parts of Demchok

I have often mentioned on this blog, the unusually-long stay of Deng Xiaogang, Deputy Party Secretary of the Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR) and Secretary of TAR’s Politics and Law Committee (in other words, responsible for the law and order, security and police in Tibet) in Ngari Prefecture “to inspect the border security and the People’s Liberation Army bases”.
During the past 2 months, he spent most of his time in Western Tibet, except for one or two times he had to rush to Lhasa to receive VVIPs.
On June 20, an article in The Tibet Daily mentions: "Deng Xiaogang comforts the rank and file of the police in border County", adding that Deng “inspected Rutok, the border county in Ngari Prefecture and conveyed to the rank and file of the border policemen, the Party’s cordial greetings. He cordially shook hands with the soldiers and comforted them.”
Rudok is located near the Pangong Lake (tso) stretching between India and China; it is where Chinese ‘water’ incursions often occur.
Addressing the border guards, Deng Xiaogang stressed: "Tibet is very special strategic location; it is an important barrier for the national security; development and stability in these border areas is an important part of the region's overall situation. In recent years, under the strong leadership of the CPC’s Central Committee, the regional Party committee [of the TAR] and the [local] government firmly requested people to unite and take a lead in the development of the region; they went all out to maintain stability, and improve people's livelihood as much as possible; to build prosperity, harmony, happiness, a place ruled by law, a beautiful new socialist Tibet and [finally] to work hard."
Apart from the usual Communist jargon, the question remains why should a senior, powerful leader like Deng spend weeks in such remote places.
One possibility is that China wants to reinforce its border with India, especially after the Modi Sarkar declared that one of its priorities was the development of infrastructure along the borders (see my interview with Kiren Rijiju).
Deng has not been the only Chinese official to visit the beautiful (and strategic) province of Ngari.
Zhang Yijiong, Deputy Director of the Central United Front Work Department, who is also the interlocutor-designate for eventual negotiations with Dharamsala, followed the footsteps of Deng Xiaogang.
Wu Yingjie, Deputy Secretary of the TAR, Deng Xiaogang and Dong Mingjun, one of the TAR’s vice-chairmen were on Zhang’s side.
When Zhang Yijiong particularly visited Purang County, at the trijunction India-Nepal-Tibet, near Mt Kailash, his trip was of course, not a spiritual one.
He met policemen, firefighters (for preventing immolations?), officers and troops manning the border with India, the SWAT (commandos) and lectured them on the different aspects of ‘counter-terrorism’ and ‘stabilization’.
He praised the troops for remaining ‘steady’ despite the cold and the lack of oxygen, the harsh environmental conditions and complimented them for fulfilling their duties conscientiously without being overtaken by fatigue.
He asked them to continuous keep their fighting spirit "to maintain a sustained harmony and stability of Ngari area and to work for the development and stability of Tibet".
He thanked the soldiers for their important contribution to the Chinese nation: “On behalf of the Central United Front Work Department, my heartfelt gratitude and highest respect for you, I hope you will continue to make persistent efforts, do a solid job for the long-term stability and the overall stability of Tibet”, he told the border troops.
The caring party leader asked the soldiers to look after themselves and pay attention to their health.
More importantly, General Xu Qiliang, a member of the Politburo of the CCP's Central Committee and one of the two vice chairmen of the Central Military Commission (CMC) ‘inspected’ the Xinjiang and Tibet garrisons.
According to a military website: "Xu Qiliang recently [when is not disclosed] inspected the troops of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and the People’s Armed Police Force (PAPF) garrisoning Xinjiang and Tibet."
General Xu visited the soldiers and officers stationed in the Aksai Chin and Ngari opposite the Indian troops.
Note that there was a recrudescence of ‘intrusions’ into the Indian territorial waters on the Pangong lake and on the ground (Demchok) around the time of his visit.
No doubt just a coincidence!
On June 24 and 25, the powerful Commander of People’s Armed Police Force (PAPF), Wang Jianping had visited Lhasa and Ngari prefecture ‘to carry out investigations’. The boss of all paramilitary forces in China, an old Tibet hand (he was posted in Tibet between 1996 and 2000), emphasized that the troops should “resolutely complete every task keeping in mind the tasks that are more urgent, working hard to start the new phase of establishing the police team for a new achievement for the developmental breakthrough and long term peace and stability of Tibet.”
In Lhasa, he was accompanied by the TAR Secretary Chen Quanguo, Deng Xiaogang, Choedak (Qizha La), Wang Ruilian, Kelsang Tsering, Dorjee Tsedrub, Lobsang Gyurmey and others.
General Wang Jianping’s visit was followed by the arrival in Lhasa of Meng Jianzhu, Politburo Member and head of the Commission for Political and Legal Affairs of the Central Committee. Meng spent five days in Lhasa and Lhoka. While in Tibet, he asserted that “local officials should have a profound understanding of the long lasting nature of the anti-secession efforts, and always take them as the primary political task, he said, vowing a harsh crackdown on separatist activities or terror attacks.”
It is not known if Meng had time to drop by Ngari.
Now, on the development side, Shaanxi Party Secretary Zhao Zhengyong also visited Ngari. Shaanxi is one of two provinces that have ‘adopted’ Ngari Prefecture by sending hundreds of cadres to carry out infrastructure and developmental projects.
On July 16, a Chinese website reported: “Zhao Zhengyong [downgraded by the website as Deputy Secretary of Shaanxi] led the team of the party government delegates to Gar [Gartok] county of Ngari prefecture to investigate the project of Shaanxi’s aid to Tibet. They visited and greeted the cadres aiding Tibet. He emphasised that Shaanxi will sincerely implement the orders of the Central Party, regarding the work of giving aid to Tibet. He said that they will incorporate Ngari’s development into the overall plan of the Shaanxi province, start formulating the 13th five-year plan of Shaanxi at the earliest and give impetus to Ngari Prefecture’s new developmental breakthrough.”
Zhao was accompanied by Padma Choling (Chairman of TAR people’s Congress and only Tibetan in the Central Committee) and Jiang Zelin (Standing committee member of CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee and Vice Governor of Shaanxi Provincial People’s Government).
Lhasa TV showed Zhao’s visit in Ngari.
At the end of 2012, Shaanxi had allocated 4 million US $ to make Demchok, the border town with India [note the traditional Demchok village is in Ladakh, but the Chinese have built/renovated their own Demchok on their side of the LAC] into a ‘model village’.
CCTV showed new homes, a guest house (for future Indian visitors?) and a map of the nearby historical spots.
The TAR website explains: “The border line [with India] passes through Dian-jiao [Demchok] village of Tashigang township, Gar County .On Aug 2011, the Shaanxi Province fund for aiding Tibet donated 21million Yuan to Dian-jiao [Demchok] village for making it a model border village by promoting economic development of the border area, unity among the ethnic groups and consolidation of the border.”
The article continues: “Waking into the Dian-jiao [Demchok] model border village, one can see an irregular arrangement with charming effect which is filled with Tibetan characteristics. There are good water, electricity, road and communication facilities. Facilities like Solar energy street lights and gymnasium equipments are also available. Zhao Zhengyuan had close interaction with the village cadres, members of the working group stationed at the village, the security personnel responsible for guarding the border, to get a detailed understanding of the situation of building of the model village, the situation of the Party branch of the village and the village [Party] Committee. He pointed out that TAR party committee and the government is sincerely implementing every policy that is beneficial to the people and that will bring prosperity to the border areas.”
What to conclude from all this?
These high-profile visits are linked with the railway line soon reaching Shigatse. This will bring a tremendous boost to the region, first around Shigatse and particularly to the new landport in Kyirong which will become the most important link between Tibet and Nepal, but also to Western Tibet (Ngari prefecture).
Beijing seems keen to open the area to large-scale tourism like it was earlier done in Lhasa and Nyingchi.
It will be one way to get more revenues for the region; they can be reinvest later in the ‘development’ of the area.
This, of course, poses serious security problems to China, mainly due to the proximity of the border with India. This explains the visit of General Xu Qiliang [originally, an Air Force officer] and General Wang Jianping, responsible of the paramilitary forces on the border.
The last two visits mean that China remains in a state of alertness and preparedness on its frontier with India. Regular incursions (in the Western and Eastern Sectors, but in the Central Sector too - in Uttarakhand) will probably continue; it is one way for Beijing to test the Indian waters (and the Modi Sarkar).
The visit of Zhao Zhengyong demonstrates that China is keen to invest in the rapid development of the area with the help of other Chinese provinces.
The construction of a new guest house in Demchok is perhaps a sign that China may agree to open the traditional border between Tibet and India; on a very small scale in a first stage, but security issues have to be tackled first.
That is probably what Deng Xiaogang was inspecting.
From the Indian side, the situation is worth watching.

Dharamsala Interlocutor visits Western Tibet

Zhong Yijiong visiting a Tibetan family
when he was posted in Jiangxi

The craze for Ngari continues.
Zhang Yijiong, Deputy Director of the Central United Front Work Department, who is also the interlocutor-designate for eventual negotiations with Dharamsala followed the footsteps of Deng Xiaogang, the Tibetan Autonomous Region’s (TAR) Deputy Secretary who has been spending weeks in the border areas of Western Tibet (Ngari).
Zhang, a member of the all-powerful Central Committee of the Communist Party came to give some guidance to the local cadres on terror issues, counter-terrorism and of course ‘stability' and also to 'encourage cadres and masses of all ethnic groups'.
I also wonder how many ethnic groups, apart from the Tibetans (and the Han soldiers) live in Western Tibet.
Zhang, who was posted in Tibet between 2006 and 2010, was accompanied by a high-level delegation.
Wu Yingjie, Deputy Secretary of the TAR, Deng Xiaogang, in-charge of the Politics and Law Committee (read law and order and security) and Dong Mingjun, one of the TAR’s vice-chairmen were on Zhang’s side.
Before leaving Lhasa, Zhang Yijiong called on Pagbalha Namgyal Rinpoche, the National Vice-Chairman of CPPCC and …oh surprise, on the Panchen Gyalsten Norbu.
It is surprising, because the Lama was supposed to have gone back to Beijing, at least according to The Tibet Daily.
Did he miss the plane?
Or did he decide to experience the blue sky of Western Tibet (or simply visit  'his' Tashilhunpo monastery monastery?) before returning to the polluted Chinese capital?
Or did he take a ride on the Lhasa-Shigatse railway which is expected to be officially inaugurated in August (a month earlier than earlier planned!).
It is not clear from the reports published so far.
Though Zhang Jiong visited Purang County at the trijunction India-Nepal-Tibet, near Mt Kailash, his trip was not spiritual in nature.
He met all the police officers, the firefighters (for preventing immolations?), the officers and troops manning the border with India, the SWAT (commandos) and lectured them on the different aspects of counter-terrorism and ‘stabilization’.
He praised the troops for remaining ‘steady’ despite the cold and lack of oxygen, the harsh environmental conditions and for fulfilling their duties conscientiously without being overtaken by fatigue.
He asked them to continuous remain in fighting spirit "to insure orderly activities, maintain a sustained harmony and stability of Ngari area and work for the development and stability of Tibet".
He thanked them for their important contribution for the nation: “On behalf of the Central United Front Work Department, my heartfelt gratitude and highest respect [to you], I hope you will continue to make persistent efforts, do a solid job for the long-term stability and the overall stability of Tibet”, he told the soldiers.
The caring party leader asked the troops to take care of themselves and pay attention to their health.
Zhang Jiong visited other border posts, always telling the soldiers on duty to fully understand the complexity of the current grim situation (does he refer to the presence of the Dalai Lama in Ladakh?); he asked the border guards to increase their sense of responsibility and their sense of mission.
He also visited some temple (Ke Jia?) and harangued the monks; he also asked about their living conditions and noted that the majority of monks devote themselves to Buddhist practices to improve their religious skills; they are patriotic and unswervingly oppose “the Dalai clique's separatist and sabotage activities” in order to resolutely safeguard the national unification and ethnic unity.
The Party cadres were told that they should make friends with the monks, fully mobilize the enthusiasm of the patriotic and law-abiding monks and nuns and actively help Tibetan Buddhism to adapt to a socialist society; this will be for the common good and create a safe and harmonious environment, he said. All the departments should attach a great importance to the conservation work of the temples in order to protect and promote the cultural heritage of the nation.
This obsession with 'stability' shows that Beijing is quite nervous about the 'stability' of its borders with India.
Later, Zhang Yijiong went to Ngari (Ali in Chinese) where he met the United Front local cadres and other Party workers. He asked them to conscientiously implement the Party's ethnic and religious policies, and comprehensively improve the level of ethnic and religious affairs.
In other words, be nice with the local Tibetans.
Why so much focus on Ngari?
One factor is of course the presence of the Dalai Lama in Ladakh.
Ngari and Ladakh were once upon a time, part of the same kingdom.
Another reason the arrival of Narendra Modi in power in Delhi. The 'Tibet Policy' of the new Government might be different from the one followed by the Congress.
The arrival of the train in Shigatse will also be a game-changer for Western Tibet. According to Chinatibetnews.com, with a total length of 253 kilometers, the Lhasa-Shigatse railway was completed in March 2014, after 4 years of construction, with the tunnels covering 115.7 kilometers, accounting for 45.7 percent of the line length. It will be inaugurated in August.
It means that millions of Chinese tourists will have an easier access to the beautiful 'heritage' sites of Western Tibet.
By the way, I mentioned on this blog that General Wang Jianping, the People's Armed Police Commander visited Lhasa a couple of weeks back. After 'leaving' Lhasa, he reappeared in Urumqi in Xinjiang a few days later. Where did he go in between?
Did he also take a ride on the new train or visit his troops on the border with Ladakh? Nobody knows.

The new Shigatse Railway Station

 

 

A cunning dragon lurks behind the diplomatese

After Tibet, General Wang Jianping visited Xinjiang

My article A cunning dragon lurks behind the diplomatese appeared in the Edit Page of The Pioneer today.

Here is the link...

Even as the Vice President of India travelled to China to celebrate 60 years of Panchsheel, Beijing published a map that showed large parts of Indian territory as its own, while its troops sailed into Indian waters at Ladakh

Is China taking India for a ride? On the surface, everything seems good. The Vice President of India, Mr Hamid Ansari, accompanied by the Foreign Secretary, visited China to celebrate 60 years of Panchsheel. Mr Ansari estimated that the visit was “good, productive gestures of friendship were made by the host.” He added: “Chinese President Xi Jingping said he is looking forward to meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the BRICS summit… I was told that the Chinese leadership regards a vibrant relationship with India as a critical element of their policy.”
Around the same time, Beijing published its first official vertical national map of China, incorporating vast areas of the South China Sea… and India’s northern borders.  Embarrassed, the Ministry of External Affairs decided to take note of the new map which showed Arunachal Pradesh as part of China. The spokesperson was, however, quick to dismiss the new depiction of China’s borders by stating that “cartographic depiction did not change the reality that Arunachal was part of India.”
What is more shocking is the fact that the spokesperson omitted to mention that the Central Sector (parts of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh) where large chunks of Indian territory (such as Barahoti and Nilang) appear on the Chinese map too. Similarly, there was not a word for the Aksai Chin and areas around the Pangong Lake in Ladakh! Why has the MEA nothing to say about these vast areas of India’s territory? There is one more ‘detail’, which is vital for India’s defence: On the new Chinese map, the size of the Chumbi Valley, located between Sikkim and Bhutan, is extremely bloated. Does China plans to grab more territory from Bhutan?
It is all the more difficult to understand after the Indian Press had reported that on June 24, Chinese People’s Liberation Army boats came 5.5km into Indian waters on the Pangong tso (lake). The Chinese incursion lasted over two hours, involving four high-speed interceptor boats that were pushed back by Indian troops, using US-built boats. The Hindustan Times quoted Government sources to affirm that the lake has seen 12 face-offs between Indian and Chinese troops this year alone: “In 2013, there were no less than 18 face-offs between Indian and Chinese troops in Pangong tso due to serious difference in perception on the Line of Actual Control and also due to massive Chinese infrastructure build-up close to the line.” The low-key reaction of the MEA is particularly surprising when one looks at the newly-published Chinese map.
China has been a regular offender. A few months after the signature of the infamous Panchsheel Agreement in October 1954, Jawaharlal Nehru visited China. On his return, he wrote an internal note entitled ‘Implications of China Visit’. The maps of China showing large parts of India’s territory as belonging to China were discussed with the top Communist top leadership. Nehru writes: “I referred to Chinese maps which still showed portions of Burma and even of India as if they were within Chinese territory.”
Zhou Enlai cleverly replied that, “These maps were old ones and China had not done any surveying to draw new maps. Their boundaries even with Mongolia and the Soviet Union were still not clearly demarcated and there were discrepancies.” Nehru concluded: “I wondered how China would feel if a part of Tibet had been shown as part of India in our maps.” Of course, he did not have the guts to actually test this.
Today, though Beijing still promotes the Five Principles, the situation on the ground is on the way to repeat itself. Let us not forget that China’s Survey and Mapping Administration has approved the controversial map published by Hunan Map Press, which in its announcement said the map was of “great significance in safeguarding the nation’s water sovereignty and territorial integrity”.
But there is more than the maps. When one closely looks at the situation in Tibet, one realises that the leadership in Beijing has started to work hard to reinforce its borders with India. During the last few weeks, Mr Deng Xiaogang, Deputy Party Secretary of the Tibetan Autonomous Region has been ‘inspecting’ Western Tibet (known as Ngari), adjoining Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Ladakh. Is China trembling just because the Dalai Lama is going to give the Kalachakra initiation to tens of thousands of devotees in Leh? It is doubtful. China is just keen to strengthen her borders. During his long tour of Ngari, Mr Deng visited Rutok, the main town on the vicinity of the Pangong lake; the day when the lake-intrusions took place, he was ‘inspecting’ the nearby Gar country (and incidentally planning to dam the Indus).
Perhaps even more importantly, General Wang Jianping, the commander of the People’s Armed Police Force (paramilitary force manning the border)visited Lhasa on June 26. The powerful officer, with a larger budget than the PLA, inspected the TAR’s People’s Armed Police training base in Lhasa, a traffic police detachment, Tibet’s Forest Armed Police Corps and a detachment of Ngari Police. According to The Tibet Daily, he wanted to get “a detailed understanding of the situation” (on the borders).
The Chinese newspapers reported that Gen Wang acknowledged the success achieved by the Armed Police’s Tibet Corps and the PAPF in every work and asked all the police officers and men to understand the seriousness of “the complicated situation” faced by China. While asking the PAPF to continue to do its job well, Gen Wang spoke of strengthening the the force “for war preparation”. He also said a good chess player takes the initiative. According to The Tibet Daily, Gen Wang asked the PAPF to give first priority to the tasks that need to be dealt with urgently, providing a strong support for “Tibet’s continuous stability, long term stability and comprehensive stability”. ‘Stability’ has been the motto of each and every Chinese leader coming to Tibet in the recent months.
It remains to be seen if the visit of Gen Wang and Mr Deng’s tour of the border areas in Western Tibet is linked to the new aggressiveness on the Pangong tso. In view of the high level delegation accompanying Mr Deng in Ngari, it is probably the case.
The Indian media accompanying the Vice-President in his Panchsheel trip missed another thing: On June 27, President Xi, during a meeting with defense personnel, bid them “to build a strong and solid frontier defense network for both territorial land and water”.  Xinhua reported that President Xi stated: “Upon mentioning frontier defense, one cannot help thinking of China’s modern history when the country was so weak and destitute that it was for everyone to bully.” He asked the Chinese people “not to forget the history of humiliation and to build a strong frontier.” It sounds ominous, though India continues to wishfully dream of the Five Principles of Co-Existence.

A good chess player takes the initiative?

The Hindustan Times reported today: “On June 24, four Chinese high-speed interceptor boats were spotted moving from Sirijap I posts around 8.25 am to Sirijap VIII, VI and V detachments on northern banks of the [Panggong] lake. Twenty minutes later, Indian troops on the four American - made boats moved from Thukang base and intercepted Chinese vessels. The two sides first were locked in a face-off and then conducted a so-called banner drill to remind the other side of the Line.”
Is this lake-intrusion related to the visit of Deng Xiaogang to Ngari and General Wang Jianping’s (see yesterday’s posting) to Lhasa?
Deng, the Tibetan Autonomous Region's security tsar has been touring border areas of Western Tibet for days and weeks accompanied by Maj. Gen. Gao Wanhai, the Commander of the Public Security Bureau at the Border Defence General Headquarters.
On June 24, when the intrusion occurred, Deng was in Ali, the capital of Gar Country of Ngari Prefecture. A few days earlier, he was in Rutok, in the vicinity of the Lake.
Just a coincidence?
According to South Block sources, on June 24, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) boats came 5.5 kilometres into the Indian territorial waters on the Pangong Lake (tso).
Some parts of the lake are under Chinese control in the Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR), while others are under Ladakh (J&K State).
The incursion lasted over two hours, involving four high-speed Chinese interceptor boats that were pushed back by Indian troops, wit their US-built interceptor vessels.
The Hindustan Times says that the picturesque lake, 134 km long and at a height of 4,350 metres above sea level, has seen 12 face-offs between Indian and Chinese troops this year alone: “In 2013, there were no less than 18 face-offs between Indian and Chinese troops in Panggong Tso due to serious difference in perception on the LAC and also due to massive Chinese infrastructure build-up close to the line,” a government official told the Indian newspaper.

Sirijap area on the Panggong tso

Moreover, let us not forget that General Wang Jianping, the Commander of the People’s Armed Police (PAPF) visited Lhasa on June 26.
He inspected the TAR’s People’s Armed Police training base, a Traffic police detachment, Tibet’s Forest Armed Police Corps, the 117 Police Division, a detachment of Ngari Police.
According to The Tibet Daily, he wanted to get a detailed understanding of the situation.
For the purpose, he called on officers and men of the People’s Armed Police.
The Chinese newspapers reported that Wang Jianping acknowledged the success achieved by the Armed Police's Tibet Corps and the Armed Police Forces in every work and asked all the armed police officers and men to understand the serious and complicated situation that they are facing at present. He told them to strengthen the police force for war preparation and continue the good job of building up (the police forces).
He said a good chess player takes the initiative.
He asked the Force to ensure the completion of every task, giving first priority to the tasks that need to be dealt with urgently, providing a strong support for Tibet’s continuous stability, long term stability and comprehensive stability.
‘Stability’ has been the motto of each and every leader coming to Tibet in the recent months.
While on the Potala Palace Square, Wang Jianping “cordially greeted and expressed sympathy to the officers and men on duty, encouraged everybody to stand guard for the Party and the people and to be on alert.”
Walking to the Potala Palace Square’s Police Station, Wang Jianping said that the police should understand in detail the work [in Tibet]; for example, the duty of the Police Station, the range of service, the promotion the urban grid management.
The Police has to strongly protect the stability of vast areas, protect people of every ethnic minority, as well as Chinese tourists and visitors from abroad. Wang spoke of the important measures taken by the Tibet Communist Party’s Standing Committee and the TAR government’s to implement the Central Government’s policies for governing Tibet.
He mentioned the unprecedented measures to strengthen [the Party] and the innovative social management introduced. He spoke of the "effective steps which promote China’s administrative system and the modernization of the administrative capability as well as the need to seriously gain experience to continuously improve the quality of [police] work in order to become a strong pillar for Tibet’s developmental breakthrough and long term peace and stability.”
Behind this Communist jargon, published by The Tibet Daily, lies the firm resolve to control Tibet (and particularly the TAR) in an always firmer hand.
This is not good omen for Tibet; the Middle Path promoted by the Tibetans in exile seems far, far away.
It remains to be seen if the visit of General Wang and Deng Xiaogang’s tour of the border areas in Western Tibet, is linked to the new aggressiveness on the Panggong tso. It is probably the case in view of the high lever delegation accompanying Deng Xiaogang in Ngari.
A few pictures of Panggong tso from the Tibet's side:

 

 

 

 

People's Armed Police's Chief in Tibet: more repression in sight

Wang Jianping with Tibet Party Secretary Chen Quanguo

Tibet received the visit of an important guest, General Wang Jianping, the Commander of the People's Armed Police Forces (PAPF).
Who are the PAPF?
According to the latest Chinese White Paper on Defence:

In peacetime, the PAPF's main tasks include performing guard duties, dealing with emergencies, combating terrorism and participating in and supporting national economic development. In wartime, it is tasked with assisting the PLA in defensive operations. Based on the national information infrastructure, the PAPF has built a three-level comprehensive information network from PAPF general headquarters down to squadrons. It develops task-oriented weaponry and equipment and conducts scenario-based training so as to improve its guard-duty, emergency-response and counter-terrorism capabilities. The PAPF is composed of the internal security force and other specialized forces. The internal security force is composed of contingents at the level of province (autonomous region or municipality directly under the central government) and mobile divisions. Specialized PAPF forces include those guarding gold mines, forests, hydroelectric projects and transportation facilities. The border public security, firefighting and security guard forces are also components of the PAPF."

The PAPF is over-all responsible for the 'security' of the Middle Kingdom, and incidentally for extinguishing Tibetan 'immolators' (fire-fighting). The border guards (in the case of Tibet, the borders with India) are also under the PAPF.
And let us not forget that the PAPF's budget is larger than the PLA's.
See my earlier posting on this, the Defence White Paper on Tibet.

General Wang Jianping is an old Tibet-hand.
Han by nationality, he is a native of Hebei province. He was born in 1953, joined the Army in 1969. In 1997, he was promoted to major general and lieutenant general in 2007.
He served as PAPF's deputy commander for one year. before becoming Commander of the Chinese People's Armed Police Force in 2009.
General Wang replaced General Wu Shuangzhan, 64, who retired after having served a record ten years as head of the paramilitary force. At that time, Wang and about two dozen officers were promoted in what the Chinese media described "as one of the largest-ever reshuffles since the PAP was set up in 1983.”

Wang during an inspection with Xi Jinping

General Wang was one of Hu’s favorite. He was elevated twice in 2009 — from PAP chief of staff to Vice-Commander, and then Commander.
Importantly, he served as Commander of the Tibet Autonomous Region's (TAR) PAPF from 1996 to 2000. He knows Tibet well and particularly the Ngari region.

The TAR's entire Standing Committee (minus Deng Xiaogang still roaming in Western Tibet) was in attendance to receive General Wang.
But rest assure, Deng was soon back in Lhasa to report to the General about his long 'inspection tour' in the Indian borders of Western Tibet. (see my posting Why is Deng watching the Seaguls).
While in Lhasa, General Wang inspected the troops on the square in front of the Potala Palace! The choicest place for a parade, for the Chinese leadership.
In the meantime, military exercises continue on the Tibetan plateau.
Chinamil.com reported that "an anti-aircraft artillery detachment of an air-defense brigade under the Chengdu Military Area Command (MAC) fired  targets in the air on June 19, 2014. The brigade took its troops to an unfamiliar [sic] area to conduct live-ammunition firing training in mid-June, 2014."
A few pictures:

 

 

 

Further, according to The People's Daily: "On June 17, an air force division of Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) conducted actual combat exercise at a military airport on the snow-covered plateau to improve combat capability of the troops."

 

 

 

What is going on Tibet?
This morning, The South China Morning Post annouced: "Two major generals in the PLA with connections to Sichuan province have been detained as part of a corruption investigation, two sources with knowledge of the matter said. The detention of the senior officers is thought to be part of a wider inquiry into alleged graft in the military. Both men were taken into custody last month, the sources said. One of those detained, Ye Wanyong, is retired, having formerly served as a commissar in the Sichuan military region."
Maj. Gen. Ye Wanyong spent some 37 years in Tibet before transferring to Sichuan in 2006. He served in Nyingtri, Lokha and Lhasa where he was posted as a Deputy Political Commissar.
Are the corruption charges related to the time when Ye was posted in Tibet?
We may never know.