LHASA MONKS DESCRIBE CURRENT RELIGIOUS CLIMATE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CHENGDU 000184

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EAP/CM, DRL, G

E.O. 12958: DECL: 9/5/2033
TAGS: PHUM PGOV CH
SUBJECT: LHASA MONKS DESCRIBE CURRENT RELIGIOUS CLIMATE

REF: CHENGDU 183

CHENGDU 00000184 001.2 OF 002


CLASSIFIED BY: James A. Boughner, Consul General, U.S. Consulate
General, Chengdu.
REASON: 1.4 (b),(d)




1. (C) Summary: According to Buddhist monks and Tibetans at
religious centers in Lhasa visited by ConGenOff in late August,
many monks remain in detention, and security officials continue
to monitor closely and restrict the activities of monasteries.
The 150 monks of the Jokhang Temple, Tibetan Buddhism's most
holy site, have not been permitted to visit other monasteries
since March. The famed Sera Monastery, one of the most
important centers of the Dalai Lama's Gelugpa adherents, appears
almost deserted. One layman at Sera Monastery went on at length
about the arrests that have occurred. The sixty monks of
Kundeling Monastery near the Potala Palace remain confined to
their monastery. Complaints of widespread beatings of detainees
came up frequently in conversations with ethnic Tibetans. End
summary.


2. (SBU) From August 25-30, Consulate personnel were permitted
by Chinese authorities to visit the Tibetan Autonomous Region
(TAR) for the first time since the March outbreak of unrest. As
noted in reftel, ConGenOff broke away whenever possible from the
official schedule to walk around areas of the city and engage in
impromptu conversations with residents.

Jokhang Temple
--------------


3. (C) ConGenOff visited the Jokhang Temple in central Lhasa,
Tibetan Buddhism's most holy site, one morning just when the
temple opened at eight o'clock. Most of the other visitors
appeared to be Tibetan pilgrims. On the second floor of the
temple, ConGenOff met a monk sitting to one side as pilgrims
filed by the chapels. When the monk began speaking with
ConGenOff in Tibetan and English, a man who appeared to be an
ethnic Tibetan approached, listened for a few minutes, and then
walked away. The monk, in his mid-twenties, told ConGenOff he
has been studying English for several years at the Jokhang and
that "all the monks here study English." He described how the
temple's 150 monks have been prohibited from visiting other
monasteries since March. After a few minutes, a second monk
approached and said something quietly to the young monk. The
young monk then urged ConGenOff to leave since, "they are
looking for the soldiers now." ConGenOff left and was not
interfered with while departing the temple.

Sera Monastery
--------------


4. (C) Taking advantage of a lengthy gap between official
meetings one day, ConGenOff got into a cab for the ten-minute
ride from downtown Lhasa to Sera Monastery, which lies on a
hillside on the northern outskirts of the city. Sera Monastery
is one of the principal monasteries of the Dalai Lama's Gelugpa
School of Tibetan Buddhism. After getting into the cab and
asking the driver in Chinese to take him to Sera Monastery, the
taxicab driver responded in Chinese "Look, I'm not Chinese, I'm
Tibetan. Can you speak Tibetan?" ConGenOff responded in
Tibetan, and the driver began discussing the "fight between
Chinese and Tibetans," adding that in March he hid at home. The
driver said many monks were arrested and beaten, including many
from Sera Monastery.


5. (C) During ConGenOff's two-hour stay at Sera, the monastery
appeared quiet and almost deserted, except for some Tibetan
pilgrims and a few foreign tourists. Only once did ConGenOff
encounter a group of monks. The group was composed of ten
monks, all of whom appeared to be in their early twenties,
marching (somewhat uncharacteristically for monks) two-by-two in
a column. (Note: Per reftel, there are widespread rumors in
Lhasa of security agents masquerading as monks.)


6. (C) An ethnic Tibetan layman whom ConGenOff ran into on the
monastery grounds poured out his frustration and anger about the
post-March security crackdown and the increasing number of Han
Chinese who have moved to Tibetan areas in recent years. The
man said there have been many arrests and beatings of monks
since March. He exclaimed, "Tibet is in a terrible situation!
Tell people in America about this. Tell people in other
countries about this, too!"

Kundeling Monastery
--------------


7. (C) On a different outing, walking through the winding
streets of an ethnic Tibetan residential area about a mile west

CHENGDU 00000184 002.2 OF 002


of the Potala Palace, ConGenOff came across the Kundeling
Monastery. Striking up a conversation in Tibetan with one of
the monks, a small crowd of monks soon gathered round. They
said that their monastery currently has about 60 monks, with the
youngest just eight years old. An older monk took ConGenOff
aside into the monastery sanctuary, apparently to speak more
frankly. He said that many monks in Lhasa had been detained
since March, although he did not know if any of the monks of his
monastery are currently under arrest, since some are outside the
monastery and have been unable to keep in contact. The monks
have been confined to Kundeling ever since the initial outbreak
of violence on March 14, although one monk is allowed to go
outside to buy food. The older monk said, "We love the Dalai
Lama very much! Please don't tell 'the Chinese.'"

Han Monk from Shanghai
--------------


8. (C) According to an ethnic Han monk from Shanghai who has
lived in Lhasa for the past five years and whom ConGenOff
encountered in a downtown bookstore, ethnic Han monks have been
treated far more "gently" than ethnic Tibetan monks. After
March 14, he was simply told to register with the local police
station. Ethnic Tibetans, on the other hand, had a much harder
time of it. The ethnic Han monk could not speak Tibetan.

Beating of Detainees a Major Tibetan Grievance
-------------- -


9. (C) Repeated stories of beatings of monks under detention and
the frequency with which this is mentioned by Tibetans suggest
that abusive treatment of detainees is widespread, or at least
is perceived to be so by many. It is possible that some in the
government realize the issue to be a problem in attempting to
diffuse ongoing ethnic tensions. ConGenOff saw a slogan on a
police station on the way to the airport that read, "enforce the
law in a 'civilized manner'" (wenming zhifa). However, the
absence of Tibetans from many local government positions makes
it even more difficult for Han officials to understand the
feelings of Tibetans. This in turn will likely continue to lead
Han officials to rely on the counterproductive option of "strike
hard."
BOUGHNER