China forces Tibetan nomads to replace prayer flags with Chinese national flag: Report

The recent report suggests that Tibetan nomads in China's Qinghai province are being forced to replace the prayer flags they placed near their camps with the Chinese national flag. The critics term the action as an example by the Chinese government to eradicate Tibetan cultural and religious activities. According to a Tibetan living in exile, the campaign began in Matoe county in Qinghai's Golog Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture at the beginning of the year, Radio Free Asia (RFA) reported. 

He further stated that Nomads scattered over Matoe are being compelled to attend political education sessions. The Chinese government is also putting up the national flag in areas where Tibetans normally hold religious ceremonies, he added. "They are also dismantling the furnaces used to perform purifying procedures and removing Tibetan prayer flags hoisted on hilltops, claiming they are not environmentally friendly," RFA's source told the outlet. 

China demolishes visible symbols of Tibetan culture & religious belief 

As per the report, the authorities have also demolished the visible symbols of Tibetan culture and religious belief in other Tibetan regions including Tibet's regional capital Lhasa. Earlier in November 2020, China also prohibited the burning of juniper boughs at the city's famed Jokhang Temple, citing health concerns. Pema Gyal, a researcher at Tibet Watch in London, described China's latest drive in Matoe as a politically motivated endeavour to monitor and control local Tibetans' thoughts. 

Chinese trying to gain control over traditional Tibetan religious activity: Experts

"The way the Chinese government conducts these political education sessions for Tibetan nomads, compelling them to raise the Chinese flag and display photos of Chinese Communist leaders in their houses, has raised serious concerns," Gyal stated as per the RFA. Experts and observers claim that the removal of prayer flags and limitations at the Jokhang and other holy sites show a growing pattern of Chinese control over traditional Tibetan religious activity, as well as Beijing's attempts to redefine Tibetan Buddhism as a Chinese faith.  It is pertinent to mention that the Chinese government occupied Tibet in 1950 and ever since has tried to grip the region under its control. 

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