Frustrated by the growing popularity of the Dalai Lama and Tibetan Buddhism, the Chinese government has escalated its repressive religious campaign in Tibet. Recently, it conducted raids in Amdo based monastery and nearby villages to confiscate photographs of the Dalai Lama.The Amdo region is home to several Tibetan Buddhist monasteries that hold great cultural and spiritual significance.
This is not the first time China has carried out such operations. The government has long prohibited the display of the Dalai Lama’s photos in Tibet, with numerous incidents of Tibetans being beaten or arrested under fabricated charges. The Chinese authorities recently searched LarangTashiKhyil Monastery and surrounding villages in Amdo, confiscating photos of the Dalai Lama on the grounds that displaying them was illegal. Officials forcibly entered monks’ quarters and homes, cutting off all communications from the area. The villages raided included Thangnag, Ngonchag, Ledruk, and Sangkhog.
In Marteng alone, after thorough household searches, officials filled three large bags with confiscated photos, with a fourth bag nearly full. Although no beatings or detentions were reported between October 16 and 19, residents were intimidated and compelled to surrender the photos unwillingly.
While these raids unfolded, Chinese officials also forced thousands of Tibetans to attend a controversial Panchen Lama ceremony organized under tight security. Monks, nuns, and senior lamas—including the 7th Gunthang Rinpoche, the Sakya abbot, and the Sera abbot—were compelled to participate in the Kalachakra empowerment led by Gyaltsen Norbu, the state-appointed Panchen Lama.
The four-day religious event, held from October 9 to 12 at the Kyi-kyiNakha site of TashiLhunpo Monastery in Shigatse, mirrored a similar 2014 Kalachakra ceremony led by Norbu that sparked outrage. Reports then indicated that Chinese officials had offered financial incentives and coerced Tibetans to attend. These actions were seen as part of Beijing’s broader strategy to elevate Norbu’s profile as a compliant spiritual figure who serves the Communist Party’s political agenda.
By promoting Norbu, the Chinese government has been trying to impose its version of Buddhism and weaken the Dalai Lama’s influence. His appointment as the state-sanctioned Panchen Lama is a key part of Beijing’s long-term strategy to control Tibet’s religious hierarchy, especially in anticipation of the Dalai Lama’s eventual succession. Norbu is expected to act as the “official” Panchen Lama, demonstrating unwavering allegiance to the Communist Party.
The CCP’s religious manipulation stems from its rejection of the legitimate 11th Panchen Lama, Gendun Choekyi Nyima, recognized by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and revered by Tibetans. Kidnapped by Chinese authorities in 1995 at the age of six, he remains missing to this day. Thirty years later, there is still no credible information about his whereabouts or well-being.
The Tibetan Review quoted the U.S. Department of State’s 2023 report, which states that under Sinicization regulations, China controls every aspect of religious life in occupied Tibet and is guilty of serious human rights violations. The report condemned Beijing’s campaign to Sinicize Buddhism—forcing it to conform to Party ideology—and noted that thousands of Tibetans had been arrested for practicing their faith in ways deemed contrary to Party loyalty.
Similarly, the U.S. Resolve Tibet Act accuses China of “suppressing the ability of the Tibetan people to preserve their religion, culture, language, history, way of life, and environment.” Despite Beijing’s claims that Tibetan culture and religion are “protected and respected,” international rights groups paint a different picture. Amnesty International reports that Tibetan Buddhists, like other religious minorities in China, are routinely “oppressed or imprisoned for practicing their religious beliefs.”
Four years ago, the Xi administration launched a campaign in Zawonpo Township, Sershul County, in the Karze area, where officials removed photos of the Dalai Lama and replaced them with portraits of Chinese leaders. Tibetans were forced to sign a five-point pledge that required: expressing gratitude to the Communist Party, showing love for the motherland, avoiding prohibited photos, discouraging relatives from keeping such images, not sharing Dalai Lama photos online, and pledging full political loyalty. Violators were threatened with the loss of all state welfare benefits and assistance.
The Harvard International Review noted that while “Tibetan Buddhists pose no immediate threat to the Chinese government’s prerogatives in Tibet,” Beijing views their religion as a sufficient ideological threat “to warrant continued anti-Buddhist activity.” This has led to an ongoing effort to push Tibetans to denounce the Dalai Lama, who remains deeply revered among them, and to redirect their spiritual loyalty toward the state.
Freedom House’s 2022 Freedom in the World report highlighted how Chinese authorities are “especially rigorous in suppressing any signs of dissent among Tibetans, including manifestations of Tibetan religious beliefs and cultural identity.” Such systematic suppression is part of a broader attempt to reshape Tibet’s spiritual landscape under the doctrine of state-controlled religion.
The CCP’s approach towards religion is different as faith is not tolerated unless it serves the Party’s goals. By promoting “Chinese Buddhism,” Beijing seeks to craft a façade of religious harmony while using religion as a political tool to consolidate control over Tibet. This strategy aims to erode Tibetan cultural identity and replace it with a homogenized narrative of Party loyalty masked as patriotism.
China’s ongoing crackdown on the followers of the Dalai Lama and Tibetan Buddhism is a calculated political manoeuvre to suffocate Tibet’s spiritual autonomy. “Chinese Buddhism” has become a façade and a political weapon in Beijing’s hands, designed to suppress Tibet’s centuries-old faith and replace it with a state-sanctioned version of obedience.
The international community, especially the United States and Western democracies, must take a stronger stance against China’s religious persecution in Tibet. Holding Beijing accountable through diplomatic, legal, and human rights channels is essential to prevent the extinction of Tibet’s cultural and spiritual identity. Without firm global intervention, the voice of Tibetan Buddhism—and the teachings of the Dalai Lama—risk being silenced under the shadow of authoritarian control.
Source – https://hir.harvard.edu/repression-tibetan-buddhism-china/
https://freedomhouse.org/country/tibet/freedom-world/2022
