China lays store by a violent solution of the nationality question and endangers the stability of the whole country

The Society for Threatened Peoples (GfbV) accused the Chinese government on Tuesday of trying to solve the nationality question by violent means. "After the riots in Tibet at the weekend anyone refusing a dialogue with the moderate Dalai Lama and criminalising him as a troublemaker is deliberately aiming at an escalation of the violence”, criticised the GfbV Asia expert, Ulrich Delius and warned: "In future people taking part in demonstrations in Tibet will be more inclined to violence and less ready to compromise.” This strategy is not only a disregard of basic human rights, but also endangers the stability of the People’s Republic. The Prime Minister, Wen Jiabao, turned down on Tuesday any question of a dialogue with the Dalai Lama.

In order to prevent the protests on nationality from spreading, the Chinese authorities imposed a night-time curfew on Monday in two towns of the neighbouring region of Xinjiang, which is inhabited mainly by Moslem Uighurs. In the Tibetan districts of the mainly Chinese provinces of Gansu, Qinghai and Sichuan there were also protests by Tibetans. "However Peking will not be able to hold the Tibetans and Uighurs down permanently by means of force”, said Delius. There is no alternative to a dialogue with the Dalai Lama and the generally recognized representatives of the Uighurs.

For years the GfbV has been calling for the beginning of a genuine dialogue between the Chinese leaders and the Dalai Lama. The human rights organisation has warned constantly over the past ten years that the Tibet conflict will escalate after the death of the present Dalai Lama, since young Tibetans are less inclined to compromise with the Chinese government. "The tensions in the areas of China’s different nationalities became very clear last weekend when Tibetans after non-violent protests lasting several days began to throw stones and to arm themselves with metal bars.”