A PRC SCHOLAR LOOKS AT LHASA'S FLOATING POPULATION

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 CHENGDU 000297 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR EAP/CM, G/SCT, AND DRL NSC FOR CHRISTINA COLLINS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/20/2032 TAGS: PGOV ECON ELAB PHUM SOCI CH SUBJECT: A PRC SCHOLAR LOOKS AT LHASA'S FLOATING POPULATION CHENGDU 00000297 001.2 OF 003 CLASSIFIED BY: John Hill, Consul General, Chengdu, Department of State. REASON: 1.4 (b),(d) ¶1. (C) Summary: The July 2006 opening of the Qinghai-Tibet railway greatly boosted access to the Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR) for both tourists and migrant workers, accelerating economic growth and ethnic Han immigration to the TAR. Sichuan University Tibetology Department PhD student Bao Dong's November 2007 issue of "Tibetan Studies" marshals tourism, public security and family planning data and estimates to provide an interesting open-source picture of the size and dynamics of Lhasa's floating population. According to Bao, the increase in visitors has improved Lhasa's economy and cultural situation, and has nurtured a feeling of "national unity," although it has also brought an increase in crime and environmental degradation. See the summary translation of the article by Congen Chengdu below. End summary. ¶2. (C) The following is Congenoff's summary translation of an article by Sichuan University Tibetology PhD student Bao Dong that appeared in the November 2007 issue of "Tibetan Studies," titled "Analysis of Lhasa's Floating Population After the Opening of the Qinghai-Tibet Railroad." BEGIN SUMMARY TRANSLATION With Opening of Railroad, Lhasa's Floating Population Increases Rapidly -------------- -------------- -------------- ¶3. (SBU) As the historical, cultural and economic center of the TAR, Lhasa draws large numbers of tourists, pilgrims and migrant workers. Since the Qinghai-Tibet railway opened, the increasing movements of population from the Chinese interior into the TAR has been of great concern not only to the Chinese government and the Communist Party but has also attracted foreign attention as well. After the railroad opened, President Hu Jintao directed that more attention be paid to research and management of Tibet's floating population. The TAR has called several conferences on the floating population. This article examines issues related to the floating population of Lhasa since the opening of the Qinghai-Tibet railroad. How Many Are Coming, and Who Are They? -------------- -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Over the five months following its opening on July 1, 2006, the Qinghai-Tibet railroad transported over 600,000 passenger-trips. Most of the train trips were departures from the TAR, since the train started in the middle of the May - November floating population high season. Air traffic to Lhasa's Gongar Airport jumped as well from 885,000 in 2005 to 1.04 million passenger-trips in 2006. ¶5. (SBU) According to the Lhasa Family Planning Office, before the railroad came to Lhasa, Lhasa's "floating population" (Congen note: persons there without local household registrations or hukous) was 70,000 to 80,000 in the December-April off season and about 170,000 in the May - November high season. After the railroad began operation, Lhasa's floating population annually peaks at over 200,000 (Congen note: Lhasa's floating population includes Tibetans from rural areas of the TAR, so the number of non-ethnic Tibetan floaters during the off season is likely less than 80,000. End note.) Short-term travelers, business travelers and visiting government workers who stay 4 - 8 days along with Tibetan Buddhist religious pilgrims at over 2 million person-trips were the biggest component of Lhasa's floating population. Tourists typically come during the May-to-November high season, while pilgrims from the TAR, non-TAR ethnic Tibetan areas, Nepal and elsewhere typically come during the summer when there are many religious holidays and festivals. ¶6. (SBU) Most of the TAR's floating population is between the ages of 20 and 50 years old. Older people find living on the high plateau physically too taxing. However, the rapid increase of discretionary income in China over the past decade, and the much lower transportation costs made possible by the train, has made a family trip to Tibet within the reach of many average urban Chinese. For Bao, Positive Effects -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Bao Dong lists the following positive effects of the CHENGDU 00000297 002.2 OF 003 increased floating population on Lhasa: -- The floating population has turned tourism and the service sector generally into pillars of Lhasa's economy. In 2006, the Lhasa City government encouraged Lhasa peasants to get jobs in the tourist industry. About 5200 farmers employed in tourism earned 61 million RMB (USD 8.1 million) or 3.6% of Lhasa's tourism income. Demand from the floating population has boosted sales and prices of local Tibetan products such as chongcao (caterpillar fungus) used in Chinese traditional medicine. -- The floating population includes many educated or talented people who bring in science, technology and advanced management methods, and furnishes a competitive supply of potential hires for Lhasa employers. -- Person-to-person contacts between ethnic Han people from the interior and ethnic Tibetans builds relationships that strengthen unity among China's peoples. This also reduces the feeling among the Han that Tibetans are exotic. -- The floating population is changing the thinking of Lhasa's people. More Lhasa people are studying not just Chinese but other foreign languages. Some monks at the Jhokang speak several foreign languages. The increase in the floating population also brings changes in ideas about family life. Lhasa people used to think the more children the better; now more and more think of having fewer children so they can take better care of them. -- Sanitation in Lhasa has improved considerably since the 1990s when one saw human waste on the street. And Negatives: -------------- ¶8. (SBU) -- Lhasa now has traffic jams, something formerly unfamiliar to Lhasa people. The many cars coming from outside have made Lhasa traffic even more disorderly than before, including an increase in the numbers of cars without plates and unlicensed drivers. -- The rapid increase in Lhasa's floating population has harmed Lhasa's environment. Many of Lhasa's more crowded places, and especially big construction sites, are very dirty and have become breeding places for disease. -- Noise, air, and water pollution have all increased with congestion. In the center of Lhasa, one often sees beggars and people sleeping out in the open. -- Some members of the floating population from rural areas aren't used to city life, and spit and leave human waste in the street. This not only harms the tourist industry but also harms the image of China in the eyes of foreign friends. -- Lhasa has a fragile high plateau environment. If it is damaged by the floating population, it will be very hard to restore. -- As in other large Chinese cities, auto emissions and garbage produced by the floating population is several times higher than that of residents. -- The crime rate has risen steadily along with the increase in the floating population. According to the Lhasa Public Security Bureau, the number of crimes and the cleverness of the criminals have increased considerably since Lhasa's link to the Qinghai-Tibet railway opened on July 1, 2006. Several incidents of theft of railway equipment since the railroad opened were all done by members of the floating population. The Lhasa Public Security Bureau is concerned about growing links between Lhasa criminals and criminals in the Chinese interior and overseas. -- Since the railroad has brought more tourists and pilgrim to Lhasa, visiting the Potala Palace has become much more difficult. Overloading of the Potala Palace will damage it and shorten its life. Tickets to get in are in short supply and are often scalped for several times the 100 RMB (USD 13.30) original price. The treasures of the Potala Palace are likely to become the target of criminals hiding within the floating population. Bao's Suggestions -------------- ¶9. (SBU) Bao Dong makes suggestions for management of Lhasa's floating population as follows: CHENGDU 00000297 003.2 OF 003 -- The floating population contributes to Lhasa's development, but it needs to be managed so that its pluses and minuses can be more clearly understood. -- The efficiencies of computer networks need to be used to improve the management of Lhasa's population management, taxes, administration, planning, public health, etc. This will make it much easier for public security and other offices to exchange information to avoid stove-piping. -- Laws and regulations on Lhasa's floating population need to be drawn from the experience of Chinese cities in the interior. The Party and government should do more research on how the opening of the Qinghai-Tibet railway is changing the composition of Lhasa's floating population. -- Lhasa has an important role to play as a center for tourism and pilgrimage as well, in addition to its importance in the defense of China's southwestern frontiers. -- Therefore the size of the floating population that does not contribute to Lhasa's development should be controlled. Most of these fall in the category of drifters who "have no legal documentation, no legitimate job, and no legitimate residence," criminals, pimps and prostitutes, drug dealers and thieves, as well as people from abroad who have ulterior motives and want to engage in splittist activities. Only if the floating population is properly controlled can the floating population contribute optimally to Lhasa's development and its negative effects on Lhasa minimized or eliminated. END SUMMARY TRANSLATION Comment -------------- ¶10. (C) With inmigration into the TAR a highly sensitive topic, Chinese officials are rarely willing to discuss the situation frankly. However, PRC academic journals, many now easily available through the massive multi-million article PRC full text CNKI academic database, offer much more information, frank analysis, and a fair idea of some of the analysis and recommendations being presented to China's leadership. Although Bao Dong's "Pluses and Minuses" appear to emphasize the economic and public security effects of the changes in Lhasa's floating population, the article also provides a relatively detailed look at the situation and a framework for analyzing the effects of inmigration in Lhasa and other cities in the TAR. ¶9. (C) Note: The CNKI database is accessible not only online at cnki.net but also to USG users anonymously through the Special Collections Library at Wright-Patterson AFB. See opensource.gov for details. HILL