Xi vows to step up fight against separatism in Tibet
Beijing, Aug 25 (PTI) Chinese President Xi Jinping today vowed to step up the battle against separatism in Tibet to ensure national and ethnic unity in the strategic Himalayan region which has witnessed a spate of suicides demanding return of the Dalai Lama.
"Key efforts in the work for Tibet should be spent on ensuring national unity and consolidating ethnic unity, with realising long-term and comprehensive social stability as an obligatory task," Xi said at a two-day meeting regarding southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region which ended today, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.Xi underlined national and ethnic unity as the key plans for Tibet, vowing to focus on long-term comprehensive stability and an unswerving anti-separatism battle, official media reported today.
Xi stressed the country should "firmly take the initiative" in the fight against separatism.
During the meeting, Xi reiterated a series of strategies that have been in effect during the 60-plus years of governing Tibet, citing an idea that governing border areas is the key for governing a country, and stabilising Tibet is a priority for governing border areas.
The President called for a comprehensive and accurate implementation of the Party's policies concerning ethnic and religious affairs as well as efforts to increase a sense of identity for people from various ethnic groups with "the motherland, Chinese nationality, Chinese culture, the CPC and socialism with Chinese characteristics."
Xi urged the promotion of Marxist values in people's views on ethnics, religion and culture.
"We should help people of various ethnic groups understand, support, appreciate and study from each other," Xi said, calling for more educational campaigns to promote ethnic unity and a sense of belonging to the same nationality.
According to Xi, efforts should be made to promote patriotism among the Tibetan Buddhist circle and effectively manage monasteries in the long run, encouraging interpretations of religious doctrines "that are compatible with a socialist society".
Tibet has witnessed massive development in recent years but there is still a lot of unrest over the large-scale immigration of majority Han-Chinese in the remote mountainous region.
According to overseas Tibet groups over 120 Tibetans have committed self immolations in recent years demanding the return of the Dalai Lama from his exile in India.
Dalai Lama, the most revered leader of Tibetan Buddhists, fled to India in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule. China views the 80-year-old spiritual leader as a separatist trying to separate Tibet from the country.
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