By China Bureau Chief Maria Siow
Chinese officials say improvements in health care standards in Tibet have almost doubled life spans there from 35 to 65 years.
And by 2010, they are confident that Tibet’s development can rival other Chinese cities.
But not everyone welcomes the changing landscape.
The old Tibet was said to be extremely poor and backward, where slavery was rampant.
The majority of Tibetans were denied of all means of production.
More than 95 per cent of the population were illiterate.
But like elsewhere in China, economic reform has transformed the lives of Tibetans.
Over the past few decades, annual per capita income has risen several folds, to US$665 last year.
Considered low even by Chinese standards, it was nonetheless a far cry from the old days.
Apart from basic necessities, ordinary Tibetans are now able to afford a greater variety of consumer goods.
Beijing says it has poured billions of dollars into Tibet, building schools, factories, hospitals and roads, vastly increasing the economic and material wealth of Tibetans.
As for religious oppression, officials cite impressive figures to paint a thriving picture of religious tolerance. Tibet has some 1,700 monasteries, and 46,000 monks and nuns.
“Religious folks and the lay men alike are free to practice their faith, visit the temples and make offerings. The public can invite lamas to their homes for funeral rites. Religious freedom is an individual matter that no one can interfere with,” said Thupten, Tibet Ethnic and Religious Commission.
According to the region’s top official, Tibet’s negative press stems from inadequate publicity.
While the Potala Palace dominates the skyline in the heart of the capital, some say Lhasa is growing in size and losing its Tibetan identity.
And Jokhang Monastery – the religious and geographical centre of Lhasa – is also said to resemble a cross between a western shopping mall and a Chinese city square.
Even with the best of intentions, in a place as historically rich and complex as Tibet, it is difficult to say with certainty when oppression begins, and when freedom ends.
Officials say any talk about oppression and cultural genocide is totally untrue and does not exist in Tibet.
Rather, the autonomous region is an enlightened one with a culture that is rich, distinct, and well-preserved. But like most things in Tibet as well as in China, the truth probably lies somewhere in between.
