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China closes Tibet to foreign tourists: agencies, hotel
Beijing (AFP) Feb 24, 2009 China has closed Tibet to foreign tourists ahead of next month's highly sensitive 50th anniversary of a failed uprising against Chinese rule, tour agencies and other industry people told AFP Tuesday. The ban comes amid deep tensions in the Himalayan region, with a reported increase in security forces and a call by the Dalai Lama for a boycott of Tibetan New Year celebrations on Wednesday, in protest against Chinese rule. "Authorities asked tour agents to stop organising foreigners coming to Tibet for tour trips until April 1," an employee at a government-run travel agency in Lhasa, who could not be named for fear of reprisals, told AFP. He said the city's tourism bureau had decided this at a meeting in mid-February, although it was unclear when exactly the orders were given. A hotel in the Tibetan capital and three travel agencies in the southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu that normally organise trips into Tibet also confirmed the ban on foreigners. "Foreigners cannot go there in March because we have stopped giving out permits," an employee at the Chengdu Overseas Tourism Company, another government-run travel agency, told AFP. This is the second time in less than a year that the Himalayan region has been sealed off to foreign tourists. The Chinese government banned travellers from going to Tibet immediately after riots erupted in Lhasa on March 14 after four days of peaceful protests to mark the 49th anniversary of the failed uprising against Chinese rule. The uprising, which took place on March 10, 1959, led to Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, fleeing his homeland. On Tuesday, the Dalai Lama said restrictions had been placed on monasteries in Tibet as well as on foreign tourists, warning of an "unprecedented and unimaginable forceful clampdown" in the region. "The strike-hard campaign has been re-launched in Tibet and there is a heavy presence of armed security and military forces ... all over Tibet," he said Tuesday. China's recent moves suggested it planned "to subject the Tibetan people to such a level of cruelty and harassment that they will not be able to tolerate and thus be forced to remonstrate," he said. "When this happens, the authorities can then indulge in an unprecedented and unimaginable forceful clampdown," he added. China has ruled Tibet since 1951, a year after sending in troops to "liberate" the region. Tibet's government-in-exile says a government crackdown following last year's unrest left 200 Tibetans dead. China denies this, but has reported that police killed one "insurgent", and blamed "rioters" for 21 deaths. Foreign tourists were allowed back in at the end of June, but only as part of an official tour group and after applying for a permit. China Tuesday said foreigners were still able to apply to go to Tibet through "normal channels," but did not say whether applications would be accepted. "The policy of an open Tibet will not change," foreign ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu told reporters. "As for foreign people, including foreign journalists travelling to Tibet, they can apply through normal channels." Calls made to the government of Tibet went unanswered. Authorities have vowed to ensure there is no unrest next month. Leaders in Tibet last week said they would "firmly crush the savage aggression of the Dalai clique, defeat separatism, and wage people's war to maintain stability," the state-run Tibet Daily reported. The China Tibet News also reported in January that police had investigated over 8,400 people and detained 81 during a week-long "Strike Hard" campaign in Lhasa.
earlier related report The warning came as China reportedly closed Tibet to foreign tourists and tightened security in the Himalayan region. "The strike-hard campaign has been re-launched in Tibet and there is a heavy presence of armed security and military forces ... all over Tibet," the Dalai Lama said in a message on the eve of the Tibetan New Year Wednesday. "In particular, special restrictions have been imposed in the monasteries... and restrictions have been imposed on the visit of foreign tourists," he said in this southern Indian town, home to thousands of exiled Tibetans. More than 200 Tibetans were killed last March in a Chinese crackdown against protests that coincided with the 49th anniversary of the March 10, 1959 failed uprising against Beijing, according to Tibet's government-in-exile in India. Beijing denies this, but has reported that police killed one "insurgent", and blamed "rioters" for 21 deaths. China's recent moves suggested it planned "to subject the Tibetan people to such a level of cruelty and harassment that they will not be able to tolerate and thus be forced to remonstrate," the Dalai Lama said. "When this happens, the authorities can then indulge in an unprecedented and unimaginable forceful clampdown," he added. "Therefore, I would like to make a strong appeal to the Tibetan people to exercise patience and not to give in to these provocations so that the precious lives of many Tibetans are not wasted." The Dalai Lama has been living in India since fleeing his homeland in the wake of the failed 1959 uprising. His warning came as tour agencies and other industry people said China had closed Tibet to foreign tourists ahead of the anniversary. "Authorities asked tour agents to stop organising foreigners coming to Tibet for tour trips until April 1," an employee at a government-run travel agency in Lhasa, who could not be named for fear of reprisals, told AFP. A hotel in the Tibetan capital and three travel agencies in the southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu that normally organise trips into Tibet also confirmed the ban on foreigners. Share This Article With Planet Earth
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