Xi vows to step up fight against
separatism in Tibet
Beijing, Aug 25 (PTI) Chinese President Xi Jinping
today vowed to step up the battle against separatism in Tibet to
ensure national and ethnic unity in the strategic Himalayan region
which has witnessed a spate of suicides demanding return of the
Dalai Lama.
"Key efforts in the work for Tibet should be spent on ensuring
national unity and consolidating ethnic unity, with realising
long-term and comprehensive social stability as an obligatory
task," Xi said at a two-day meeting regarding southwest China's
Tibet Autonomous Region which ended today, state-run Xinhua news
agency reported.Xi underlined national and
ethnic unity as the key plans for Tibet, vowing to focus on
long-term comprehensive stability and an unswerving anti-separatism
battle, official media reported today.
Xi stressed the country should "firmly take the
initiative" in the fight against separatism.
During the meeting, Xi reiterated a series of
strategies that have been in effect during the 60-plus years of
governing Tibet, citing an idea that governing border areas is the
key for governing a country, and stabilising Tibet is a priority
for governing border areas.
The President called for a comprehensive and
accurate implementation of the Party's policies concerning ethnic
and religious affairs as well as efforts to increase a sense of
identity for people from various ethnic groups with "the
motherland, Chinese nationality, Chinese culture, the CPC and
socialism with Chinese characteristics."
Xi urged the promotion of Marxist values in people's
views on ethnics, religion and culture.
"We should help people of various ethnic groups
understand, support, appreciate and study from each other," Xi
said, calling for more educational campaigns to promote ethnic
unity and a sense of belonging to the same nationality.
According to Xi, efforts should be made to promote
patriotism among the Tibetan Buddhist circle and effectively manage
monasteries in the long run, encouraging interpretations of
religious doctrines "that are compatible with a socialist
society".
Tibet has witnessed massive development in recent
years but there is still a lot of unrest over the large-scale
immigration of majority Han-Chinese in the remote mountainous
region.
According to overseas Tibet groups over 120 Tibetans
have committed self immolations in recent years demanding the
return of the Dalai Lama from his exile in India.
Dalai Lama, the most revered leader of Tibetan
Buddhists, fled to India in 1959 after a failed uprising against
Chinese rule. China views the 80-year-old spiritual leader as a
separatist trying to separate Tibet from the country.