Tsering Dhundup
DHARAMSHALA, July 8: A coalition of four Tibetan advocacy organisations has filed a legal complaint against the Musée Guimet, France’s premier Asian art museum, accusing it of systematically erasing Tibetan identity from its exhibits.
According to Students for a Free Tibet, a formal legal notice has been issued to Rachida Dati, Minister of Culture; Jean-Noël Barrot, Minister of Foreign Affairs; and Yannick Lintz, President of the Musée Guimet. The letter demands the immediate restoration of “Tibet” in museum exhibits, citing both historical truth and France’s ethical responsibility as a custodian of cultural heritage.
The lawsuit challenges the museum’s decision to rename its “Nepal-Tibet” gallery as the “Himalayan World,” accusing the state-owned institution of aligning with Chinese political narratives.
The plaintiffs, SFT- France, France Tibet, Association Lions des Neiges Mont-Blanc, and the Tibetan Community of France argue that the Musée Guimet, which operates under the French Ministry of Culture, has a public duty to maintain impartiality and historical accuracy in its presentation of Asian cultures. They allege that the museum’s recent rebranding obscures Tibet’s distinct cultural and historical identity.
The plaintiffs also argue that the change aligns with Chinese political narratives and dilutes Tibet’s distinct cultural heritage. This change also creates confusion about Tibet’s cultural distinctiveness with the political aim of erasing Tibet’s existence.
The renaming, implemented early last, has sparked 25 weeks of protests outside the museum till now. Activists demand the reinstatement of the term “Tibet,” accusing the state-run institution of historical distortion.
“The Guimet Museum must honour its commitment to present Asian arts in all their richness and diversity, without censorship or historical distortion,” said Tenzin Yangchen, president of SFT France. “We will not stand by as our history is erased from public institutions.”
Yangchen told Phayul that the legal complaint represents a unified effort by Tibetan organisations in France, supported by broad civil society support. “It may take time,” she added, “but we will keep pushing forward to see what the next step must be.”
The controversy at the Musée Guimet is not isolated. A similar dispute erupted at Paris’s Musée du Quai Branly, which in 2024 came under fire for using the term “Xizang,” the Chinese government’s designation for Tibet, in its exhibit labels. Following public protests and appeals from Tibetan groups, the museum eventually replaced “Xizang” with “Tibet.”
In London, the British Museum faced comparable criticism earlier this year. Tibetan activists there protested the use of “Xizang Autonomous Region” in its exhibits instead of Tibet, arguing that adopting China’s state terminology contributes to the international erasure of Tibetan identity. In Febuarary 2025, after weeks of sustained pressure, the British Museum reversed course and revised its terminology to “Tibet Autonomous Region” in its labelling. However, critics argue that the new label also aligns with China’s official designation and fails to acknowledge Tibet’s broader historical and geographic identity.
Despite these precedents, the Musée Guimet has resisted calls to revise its own exhibit language. Its director, Yannick Lintz, has declined to reinstate the term “Tibet” in the renamed “Himalayan World” gallery, further intensifying the backlash from Tibetan communities and advocacy organisations.
Tibetan activists argue that these disputes over language are more than semantic. They reflect a growing pattern of geopolitical influence, with Beijing actively pushing for the global adoption of terms like “Xizang” and regional generalisations like “Himalayan” to diminish Tibet’s historical and cultural distinctiveness. Similar tactics, they note, are employed in the case of East Turkestan, where the Chinese term “Xinjiang” is now widely used in international institutions.
4 Responses
Une attitude inacceptable du musée dont la décision est sans aucun doute guidée par nos hauts responsables politiques. Une pétition internationale, dirigeants inclus, devrait être lancée afin que l ONU reconnaisse le Tibet comme pays libre et indépendant. J ai le droit de rêver..vive le Tibet libre.
Every Tibetan supports the campaign by the four Tibetan organisations spearheaded by Students for a Free Tibet against the erring museum which has been intransigent in its dealings with the name of Tibet in its gallery. These galleries are fast becoming Chinese propaganda tools for the Chinese communist party in the west! The Chinese communist Party is a totalitarian dictatorship which has illegally occupied Tibet and is committing genocide by stealth in occupied Tibet! It is erasing the very name of our country that has been historically known throughout the world as TIBET! How would France feel if their country was named Deutschland when it was under Nazi occupation during the Second World War? It is shameful that a country which was occupied by another country can’t understand the pain of dispossession and erasure by the occupying power! The Tibetan people are facing extermination under the brutal and illegal occupation of Tibet by communist China! Tibet is a vast prison where Tibetan people are locked away without being able to travel freely even within the country itself let alone out of the country! TIBET IS ANOTHER GAZA UNDER COMMUNIST CHINA’S MILITARY OCCUPATION! Tibetans are second class citizens in their own country. One million Tibetan children (80% of Tibet’s child population) have been forced out of their homes and taken away into Colonial boarding schools to be indoctrinated into Chinese Han culture, language, customs and way of life in order to shed their Tibetan cultural heritage, language and beliefs. Tibetans are forced to imbibe Han culture and Han language to be absorbed into Han nationality! Communist China is committing EXTERMINATION OF THE TIBETAN RACE IN ORDER TO JUSTIFY ITS ILLEGAL OCCUPATION OF TIBET. THIS IS ETHNIC CLEANSING PURE AND SIMPLE! Those who directly or indirectly endorse Chinese communist ethnic cleansing, ethnocide and cultural and linguistic ERASURE OF TIBET ARE GUILTY OF BEING COMPLICIT WITH CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY! We demand the ICC (International criminal court)to investigate Communist China’s genocidal policy in occupied Tibet! We demand the international community to stand up against GENOCIDE IN TIBET AND GAZA! WE DEMAND THE PARIS BASED MUSEE GUIMET MUSEUM TO REPLACE “HIMALAYAN WORLD” INTO TIBET WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT! SUPPORTING ETHNOCIDE IS A CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY! ERASING TIBET IS ETHNOCIDE AND EXTERMINATION OF THE TIBETAN RACE!
Good job. May Buddha bless our young spirit to overcome all evils.
Strength to all Tibetans inside Tibet, may universal energies bring justice and freedom to Tibet.