Reported By Palden
Translated By TenGyal
Edited By Kelsang Jinpa
Tibetans in the so-called Hainan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture are enduring continuous physical and psychological distress following the demolition of sacred Mani stone mounds, the burning of ceremonial and prayer flags, and the forced hoisting of the Chinese national flag.
Following the Chinese government’s appointment of a Chinese official named Xiong Yuanlai as Party Secretary of the Hainan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in April, a sweeping crackdown has targeted counties and townships across the region, including Chabcha, Trika, Mangra, Ba, and Dragkar. Authorities have demolished Mani stone mounds, burned traditional doorway flags and prayer flags, and mandated the hoisting of the Chinese national flag. Additionally, under the pretext that Tibetan cadres are overrepresented, many have been dismissed from post. This pervasive and aggressive tightening of state control continues to inflict severe physical and psychological suffering on the Tibetan population.
According to a source inside Tibet, “Since around April 2026, the Chinese government has intensified its assimilation and Sinicization campaigns. Authorities are asserting that nationality takes precedence over religion, state law overrides religious law, and that it is vital to deeply study and comprehend ‘Xi Jinping’s Thought on Strengthening and Improving Ethnic Work.’ Under these pretexts, hundreds of Mani stone mounds across those counties have been systematically demolished and buried underground. Currently, over 90 percent of the mani stone mounds across the various counties and townships of the Hainan region have already been buried.”
The source further stated, “Currently, across the various counties of the Hainan region, prayer flags, wind-horse, and the flagpoles in front of every home have been torn down and burned. Furthermore, every single family has been forced to hoist the Chinese national flag on their rooftops. Claiming that there is an excess of Tibetan cadres in the government offices of the Hainan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, authorities have dismissed many of them and replaced them with a large number of ethnic Chinese officials. In fact, my next-door neighbor’s son was dismissed from his government post under this exact pretext; I don’t know if he received any kind of special allowance or pension.”
Another contact inside Tibet stated, “These days, ever since a new official arrived, we don’t see even a single day of sunshine or happiness. If we are forced into something, we cannot refuse. We have fallen into a situation where if the sun sets, the day cannot break, and if the day breaks, the sun cannot set. Every family’s doorway prayer flags have been burned, and it feels as though the oppression of 1958 has landed right back on our heads.”
According to information obtained by our correspondent, following the appointment of an ethnic Chinese official named Xiong Yuanlai as the Chinese Communist Party Secretary of the Hainan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in April of this year, a series of aggressive Sinicization and crackdown policies have been unleashed across the region’s counties. These ongoing measures are systematically trampling upon the religious beliefs and local customs of the Tibetan people.
