Human rights body claims China subjects Tibetan people to inhuman treatment

On the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, TCHRD said it stands in solidarity with the victims and families of those who have been subjected to unlawful, Chinese state-sanctioned repression through enforced disappearances, arbitrary detentions, beatings and torture.

In a statement, it said: " The Chinese government has flagrantly overlooked its consistent human rights violations and, in direct deflection of international criticism of its human rights records, has covertly legalised enforced disappearances through amendments to the Criminal Procedure Law. During the March 2012 annual session, China’s parliament, the National People’s Congress (NPC), approved changes that facilitated the continued use of enforced disappearances to target critics of government policies."

"Article 73 of the revised law authorises the secret detention of Tibetans charged with vague, trumped-up charges, ‘legally’ allowing the Chinese state to suppress dissent and criticism by detaining Tibetans deemed threats to the People’s Republic of China’s unity and stability," the statement said.

The Tibetan rights body further said: " Due to the stringent controls on information flow, including censorship and the Great Firewall, even limited official statistics reveal an alarming estimate: between 53,000 and 90,000 individuals were subjected to Residential Surveillance at a Designated Location (RSDL) from 2013 to 2021."

Further targeting China, the body said: " Tibetans continue to endure severe oppression and disappearances, and China shows no signs of halting its repressive practices. Instead, the human rights situation has worsened, with China aiming to erode Tibetan identity through the sinicisation of Tibetan religion by infusing it with  Communist elements, depriving Tibetan children of education in their native language, and tearing apart Tibetan society and families through trumped-up charges and collective punishments, all amounting to gross human rights violations."

TCHRD said it has documented more than 63 known cases of Tibetans subjected to enforced disappearance in Tibet in the past four years.

"The relatively low number of registered cases highlights a disturbing trend of underreporting, which is often associated with fear of reprisals," the body said.