Tsering Dhundup
DHARAMSHALA, Sept. 17: Minister of Security Gyari Dolma cautioned Tibetans travelling to Tibet not to fall under Chinese influence or in the propaganda machinery, emphasising the importance of vigilance during visits to their homeland during the 2025 general session of the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile on Wednesday.
Her remarks followed questions raised a day earlier by parliamentarian Tenzin Choezin during the Department of Security’s question-and-answer session. MP Choezin asked whether Tibetans in exile were following the guidelines issued by the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) in September 2024, which require all Tibetans — including current and former CTA officials — to notify the Department of Security before travelling to Tibet.
She also voiced concern over Tibetans sharing videos on social media portraying an image of freedom in Tibet, contrary to the exile community’s position that Tibetans live under repression and strict control by Beijing. While acknowledging the CTA has no legal authority over such cases, She urged Tibetans to act with moral responsibility, warning that such actions undermine the collective struggle for the Tibetan cause.
Responding to the query, Minister Gyari Dolma admitted it was difficult to determine if the guidelines were being strictly followed. However, she reiterated the need for Tibetans to inform the Security Department before travelling, especially from India, as failure to do so could create complications with host countries. “In such cases, we cannot do anything,” she warned, noting that such incidents have been reported recently.
The September 9, 2024, guidelines were issued in response to the growing number of Tibetans abroad travelling back to Tibet, amid rising security concerns. While clarifying that the CTA does not restrict individual travel, the guidelines make it mandatory for travellers to notify their local Tibetan Representative Office, Settlement Officer, or the Department of Security directly.
The CTA explained that Beijing continues to view Tibetans in exile as “separatists” and has intensified efforts to infiltrate and divide the community. “They subject all travellers to unwarranted interrogations and manipulation,” the CTA warned, noting that China has increasingly lured Tibetans abroad under the guise of tourism, pilgrimages, and family visits.
The guidelines further highlighted new visa conditions imposed by Beijing, including endorsements from organisations under Chinese control. Tibetans were cautioned against joining tours or visits organised by such groups, which may serve political motives.
The CTA also urged travellers to prepare emergency embassy contacts, report any manipulative tactics to the Department of Security, and remain alert to the long-term consequences of falling under Chinese influence. While travel to Tibet itself is not considered a betrayal of the cause, the CTA stressed that promoting Chinese policies or undermining Tibetan interests after returning abroad would be regarded as harmful to the collective struggle.
One Response
Make no mistake, this is communist China’s Machiavellian plan to kill the Tibetan independence Movement without firing a shot! They have done it in Taiwan and continues to do so by giving special treatment to Taiwanese young people to work in China and arranging free trips by Taiwanese to communist China. In fact the CCP managed to score a thumping defeat on the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) of President Lai Ching-te by influencing the Taiwan population through social media disinformation and also influencing the China organised tour goers to vote in favour of rejecting the President’s plan to raise the military budget at a time of heightened tension with communist China. The idea was to take out the dissenting Kumintang Party members and others out of the equation to get the numbers but none of them was ousted and the DPP suffered a disastrous defeat in the recall election! This is how the CCP manipulates Taiwanese people and get the result they are seeking. In the same way, the pro-West Korean President Yoon Sun Yeol was ousted and in his place a pro-China Korean leader Lee Jae Myung has been installed. All these are the handiwork of the CCP’s covet operations. Nobody in their right mind would have to be reminded that the CCP is doing the same among the Tibetan exile community. Our community has for a long time taken off our eyes from the CCP’s machinations and instead cultivated a pro-China stance. The anti-China legacy of the old generation who came from Tibet in the 1950s and 1960s was ignored and even abolished in order to curry favour from the CCP. The burning of the Chinese communist flag was banned! So was the singing of the patriotic song མི་མང་ལངས་གླུ་ which goes by with words such as བཙན་རྒྱལ་རྒྱ་དམར་བོད་ནས་མཐའ་སྤྲོད་གཏོང་གི་ཡིན་ (Imperialist communist China will be driven out from Tibet) too was banned! Communist China was embraced as a གཉེན་ (friend) and not an enemy! This has created a fertile ground for CCP infiltration. The CCP pinks have infiltrated our social media bearing Tibetan names but constantly posting divisive comments that seeks to disparage certain section of our community as bad thus pitting us against each other. As they did in Taiwan, President Lai was cast as a “dictator” and the pro-China Kuomintang politicians who were in the recall list as the “victims”! In the Tibetan diaspora, the attacks are launched on Tibetan independence advocates and the monk community. There are groups among the exile who detest the religious parliamentarians and Tibetan independence advocates with more vile than the CCP itself. These are the equivalent of the pro-China Kunmintang in Taiwan. They have more affinity towards the CCP than Tibetan independence advocates or monk community. As it were, our community is highly polarised. This is the CCP’s goal where the community, be it the Tibetans or Taiwanese are distracted in internal squabble rather than fighting for their goals. As the division widens and animosity builds among the community, the community self-destructs itself. The community implodes from within and becomes non-existent! This is the CCP’s final goal to create the environment for self-destruction. That’s how they will the battle against their enemies without firing a shot!
In the 1950s and 60s, the སྐུ་དྲག་ (Tibetan nobility) was blamed for “selling” Tibet. Today, there is every danger that those Tibetans in the west who have become more affluent and those in India may well become the catalyst for the total collapse of the Tibetan independence struggle! Most of the generation now in the west and India have never seen Tibet nor experienced the horror of invasion and brutal occupation of Tibet by communist China. So, they have neither the connection with Tibet nor the memory of pain induced by occupation. They are therefore very vulnerable to the Chinese communist rhetoric and money inducements to betray the Tibetan people and the Dalai Lama for the love of money! Tibetans who are Shugden worshippers are already the darling of the CCP as Lama Kata who defected to the side of the Dalai Lama has clearly exposed in his statements. They are anti-Dalai Lama and anti-CTA. Those who go to occupied Tibet will not participate in March 10th protest and will stop paying the Green Book Rangzen contribution. The CCP’s final goal is to prevent exile Tibetans from acknowledging the CTA as their Government! The first question the CCP officials ask Tibetans exiles who are in their custody is, “do you pay the green book money? Are you part of the TYC and do you participate in March 10th protest? Owing to this reason, those who visit occupied Tibet will not do any of those in fear of repercussion for their future visits! This will get worse once the Dalai Lama is no more with us. With more people cozying up to the CCP for visa privileges and lure of money, many Tibetans including parliamentarians will be lured to betray their people and country!!! The Japanese monk- Ekai Kawaguchi, who travelled to independent Tibet writes that “Tibetans love money and will sell their country for money”!!! This will be proven true! Therefore, in order to prevent such impending catastrophe, the CTA must ask the Indian Government to screen or restrict Tibetans from the west to visit India if they have travelled to occupied Tibet. While most Tibetans may do the right thing but some have already sold their souls to the CCP and acting against the Tibetan freedom movement. Such people are a risk to the national security of India. Those who visit occupied Tibet from India will be less and will be more careful owing to the sentiments of their host country.