25 October 2022
Dear Honorable G7 Foreign Ministers: Rt Hon James Cleverly, Secretary of State for Foreign & Commonwealth Affairs, UK; Mr Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State, United States of America; Hon. Annalena Baerbock, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Federal Republic of Germany; Hon. Catherine Colonna, Minister of Foreign Affairs, France; Hon. Mélanie Joly, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Canada; Mr Antonio Tajani, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Italy; His Excellency Yoshimasa Hayashi, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Japan;
Re: China’s Colonial Boarding Schools in Tibet
We, a coalition of over 125 Tibet-related rights groups, are writing to you ahead of the G7 Foreign Ministers Meeting in Münster to urge you to take firm joint action concerning the Chinese government’s relentless colonisation of Tibet and attempts to eradicate Tibetans’ distinct identity.
Occupied for over seven decades, China’s rule in Tibet is one of the last remnants of 20th-century colonialism. This is epitomised by a vast and alarming system of colonial boarding schools and preschools housing close to 1,000,000 Tibetan children.[1]
The children are separated from their families and communities, often through coercive measures. As a result, they are prevented from learning their mother tongue and must study a curriculum imposed by the occupying Chinese government. At the same time, scores of Tibetan-language schools have been shut down across Tibet with Tibetan teachers and language advocates arrested for simply teaching in Tibetan.
These policies aim to re-engineer Tibetan society and eliminate resistance to Chinese rule by ensuring that the next generation of Tibetans cannot speak their own language and are cut off from their culture and way of life. This effort, and in particular the system of colonial boarding schools, has already had a devastating impact on Tibetan families, causing extreme emotional and psychological distress to Tibetan children.
Given the gravity and urgency of this situation, we call on you to release a statement that:
Finally, we appeal to you to prioritise the development of more robust joint action on Tibet to collectively address China’s flawed policies so that the Tibetan people's aspirations for freedom and basic human rights can be realised. Together your governments are uniquely positioned to exercise strong and direct influence on China's leadership. By acting in unison, you will not only increase your influence over Beijing, but this common approach will provide participating governments with a greater measure of protection from China's efforts to impose its authoritarian influence on our own democracies.
We look forward to your urgent response on this request.
Signed,
Mandie McKeown
Executive Director
International Tibet Network
On behalf of
Gloria Montgomery Pema Doma Lhadon Tethong
UN Advocacy Director Executive Director Director
Tibet Justice Center Students for a Free Tibet Tibet Action Institute
Tenzin Zöchbauer Yangkey Muccini John Jones
Executive Director Secretary Campaigns & Advocacy Manager
Tibet Initiative Deutschland Tibetan Community in France Free Tibet
Sherap Therchin Tenzin Kunga Sonam Wangdue
Executive Director Chairman Chairman
Canada Tibet Committee Tibetan Community in Britain U.S. Tibet Committee
Eleanor Byrne-Rosengren Tsering Dorjee Günther Cologna
Founder President Director
Tibet Solidarity Students for a Free Tibet- Japan Associazione Italia-Tibet
Tashi Samdup Marcelle Roux
Advisor President
Tibetan Community Italia France- Tibet
and the following 110 global organisations:
Antarastriya Bharat – Tibbet Sahyog Samiti Bharrat Tibbat Sahyog Manch, India Circle of Friends (Philippines) Core Group for Tibetan Cause, India Dream for Children, Japan Foundation for Universal Responsibility of H. H. the Dalai Lama Human Rights Network for Tibet and Taiwan India Tibet Friendship Society Japan Association of Monks for Tibet (Super Sangha) National Campaign for Tibetan Support, India National Democratic Party of Tibet Roof of the World Foundation, Indonesia Students for a Free Tibet Japan Students for a Free Tibet India Taiwan Friends of Tibet The Youth Liberation Front of Tibet, Mongolia and Turkestan Tibet Lives, India Tibet Support Group Kiku, Japan Tibetan Women’s Association (Central) Australia Tibet Council Friends of Tibet New Zealand Sakya Trinley Ling Tibet Action Group of Western Australia Tibet Support Group Adelaide – Australia Tibetan Community of Victoria Tibetan Community, Queensland Israeli Friends of the Tibetan People Tibet Support Group Kenya Tibet Society of South Africa Tibet Rescue Initiative in Africa Association Cognizance Tibet, North Carolina Bay Area Friends of Tibet Boston Tibet Network Committee of 100 for Tibet International Tibet Independence Movement Santa Barbara Friends of Tibet Sierra Friends of Tibet Students for a Free Tibet – Canada Tibet Committee of Fairbanks Tibetan Association of Ithaca Tibetan Association of Northern California Tibetan Association of Philadelphia Tibetan Cultural Association – Quebec Tibetans of Mixed Heritage TIBETmichigan United Nations for a Free Tibet (UNFFT) Amigos de Tibet, Colombia Amigos del Tíbet, Chile Amigos del Tibet, El Salvador Asociación Cultural Peruano Tibetana Asociación Cultural Tibetano Costarricense World League for Freedom and Democracy Global Alliance for Tibet & Persecuted Minorities (GATPM) Finnish HongKongers Tibetan Community Netherlands | HongKongers in Leeds Aide aux Refugies Tibetains Association Drôme Ardèche-Tibet Briancon05 Urgence Tibet Casa del Tibet – Spain Comite de Apoyo al Tibet (CAT) EcoTibet Ireland Tibet Support Group, Ireland Grupo de Apoio ao Tibete, Portugal International Society of Human Rights, Munich Chapter (IGFM) Les Amis du Tibet – Belgium Les Amis du Tibet Luxembourg Lions Des Neiges Mont Blanc, France Maison des Himalayas Maison du Tibet – Tibet Info Objectif Tibet Passeport Tibetain Phagma Drolma-Arya Tara Save Tibet, Austria Society for Threatened Peoples International Students for a Free Tibet – France Students for a Free Tibet – UK Swiss Tibetan Friendship Association (GSTF) Tashi Delek Bordeaux Tibet Solidarity Tibet Support Group – Netherlands Tibetan Association of Germany Tibetan Community Austria Tibetan Community in Ireland Tibetan Youth Association in Europe Tibetan Community of Italy Tibetisches Zentrum Hamburg Lungta Association Belgium Friends of Tibet in Finland Swedish Tibet Committee The Norwegian Tibet Committee Tibet Support Committee Denmark Tibetan Community in Denmark Tibetan Community Sweden Students for a Free Tibet Denmark Czechs Support Tibet Save Tibet Foundation Tibet cesky (Tibet in Czech) Tibetan Programme of The Other Space Foundation TSG – Slovenia CADAL, Argentina Centro De Cultura Tibetana, Brazil Friends of Tibet in Costa Rica Le Club Français, Paraguay RangZen:Movimento Tibete Livre, Brazil Tibet Mx Tibet Group, Panama Tíbet Patria Libre, Uruguay Voces Tibet Scottish HongKongers Re-Water |
[1] This includes an estimated 100,000 Tibetan children aged four to six living in boarding preschools, as well as more than three quarters of Tibetan students aged six to 18 in elementary, middle and secondary schools. See https://tibetaction.net/colonial-boarding-school-report/