The government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has imposed sweeping restrictions across Tibet to suppress religious and cultural observances marking the 90th birthday of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Reports from multiple Tibetan areas reveal an intensified campaign of surveillance, arbitrary detentions, and harsh curbs on religious freedom.
Karze Monastery Under Lockdown
In Karze County, Sichuan Province, Chinese authorities deployed large numbers of security personnel to Karze Monastery, effectively confining monks and nuns inside. Residents were banned from producing visible smoke, a direct attack on the centuries-old Sangsol ritual, where juniper branches are burned to invoke blessings and ward off misfortune.
In Drakgo County, local authorities issued a formal notice prohibiting all gatherings until July 23, 2025. Sources confirm that Tibetans in Ba Zong and Siling (Xining) were imprisoned during this period, with families denied information about their whereabouts or well-being.
Crackdown Following BBC Report
After a team of BBC journalists visited Kirti Monastery in Ngaba in July to speak with monks, Chinese authorities launched an immediate crackdown. Monks were interrogated, and monasteries were warned to destroy photographs, writings, and documents linked to the exiled spiritual leader Kirti Rinpoche. Officials threatened charges of “political crimes” for violations—an accusation that carries severe prison sentences in China.
From July 13 onward, restrictions intensified at Ngaba Kirti Monastery, Taktsang Lhamo Kirti Monastery in Dzoge County, and Gyalrong Tsodun Kirti Monastery in Barkham County. Earlier this year, authorities had already banned Kirti Rinpoche’s photographs at Hor Tsang Kirti Monastery in Sangchu County, Gansu Province, extending the prohibition even to private Tibetan homes.
Adding to the repression, Chinese officials dissolved the Buddhist Educational Administration Committee, a key institution representing the four major Kirti monasteries, accusing it of maintaining ties with Kirti Rinpoche in exile.
Repression in Amdo and Central Tibet
Across Tibetan areas incorporated into Qinghai Province, restrictions grew harsher in the weeks before His Holiness’ birthday. In Yadzi (Xunhua), monasteries were forbidden from holding gatherings of more than five monks, and nearly 200 Tibetans were interrogated over alleged links to birthday celebrations.
In Kangtsa County, authorities even surveilled personal birthdays, demanding residents submit photographs of private gatherings to local security offices. On July 25, two Tibetans were detained in Chentsa County, Malho Prefecture, with their whereabouts still unknown.
Meanwhile, in the Tibetan capital Lhasa and surrounding counties such as Maldrogungkar, large contingents of armed security were deployed. Tibetans were explicitly barred from performing Sangsol rituals on rooftops and hilltops.
A Systematic Violation of Rights
Observers note that the PRC’s intensified measures reflect a broader pattern of eroding Tibetans’ religious freedom, especially during significant cultural and spiritual dates. By severing ties between Tibetans and His Holiness the Dalai Lama through intimidation, censorship, and punishment, Beijing continues to violate international human rights obligations, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Despite China’s constitutional provisions nominally protecting freedom of religion, the latest measures demonstrate once again that Tibetans’ cultural and spiritual life remains tightly controlled under Beijing’s rule.