‘Tibetan refugees down from 1.5 lakh to 85,000 in 7 years’

[christine V]

Does the decline number of Tibetan refugees in India say something? Especially in the news it say, some have returned to China.


Below is the news
Written by Rahul Tripathi | New Delhi | Updated: September 11, 2018 3:23:54 am
https://indianexpress.com/article/india/tibetan-refugees-down-from-1-5-lakh-to-85000-in-7-years-5349587/

A sharp decline has been recorded in the number of Tibetan refugees in India — from 1.5 lakh to 85,000 in the last seven years — with a large number either migrating to the US or returning to China/Tibet, according to the government’s advisor on Tibet Affairs Amitabh Mathur.

“Their numbers could be approximately 85,000, but we will get the exact figure once all of them are registered online. In the past two years, the government has simplified the process and made everything accessible on the internet,” Mathur told The Indian Express.

As per a 2011 reply by then MoS (Home) M Ramachandran before Parliament, the number of Tibetan refugees staying in 45 settlement camps across “the country was 1.5 lakh”. The fall in numbers, officials said, could be due to various factors including absence of a national refugee policy.

“Tibetans are recognised as ‘foreigners’, not refugees, because of which they cannot own any property here, neither can they apply for government jobs. After 2014, only qualified professionals from among the Tibetan refugees are permitted to take jobs in private and non-government sectors,” said an MHA official.

Speaking to The Indian Express, spokesperson for Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), Sonam Dagpo said, “The number of Tibetans going abroad has increased. The birth rate among Tibetans (in India) has also declined. However, Tibetans in exile in India are close to 1 lakh. Those who may have taken Indian citizenship may be less than 100 in number.”

According to MHA’s 2009 figures, the major concentration of Tibetan refugees is in Karnataka (44,468), Himachal Pradesh (21,980), Arunachal Pradesh (7,530), Uttarakhand (8,545), West Bengal (5,785) and Jammu and Kashmir (6,920). Tibetan refugees began pouring into India in the wake of the flight of the Dalai Lama from Tibet in 1959.

Mathur, who took over as interlocutor in 2015, said the government had introduced measures to “smoothen” the stay of Tibetans in India. “Tibetan migrants who are registered online are granted residential certificate for 5 years and such certificates may be renewed for five years on each occasion as and when applicable. For visits abroad, one-year multiple entry return visa is being issued by FRRO. In case migrants are shifting, they may intimate online, avoiding the need for visits to the centre and delays in manual transfer of registration,” he said.

When asked about granting Indian passports to Tibetan refugees on court’s direction, Mathur said, “If they become Indian citizens, they will not be entitled to benefits of relief and rehabilitation.”

The government has listed six conditions for Tibetans (by birth) to obtain Indian citizenship.

[Pema8]

Of course do the Tibetans run away from the control of the CTA who only shows off and uses the money meant for the Tibetans for themselves!

What else is there to do after 60 years of failure from the CTA who only looks for scapegoats to hide behind.

Good that it is more and more publicised that the Tibetans prefer to stay in China instead of being a refugee with no rights and no hope...

[Drolma]

The decrease in the number of Tibetans in India shows very clearly that the Tibetans are not putting more hope in the Free Tibet movement. It has been 60 years and there is no progress, how many more 60 years does one have? People just have to move on.

As more Tibetans in India are leaving India, there are also fewer Tibetans coming from Tibet to India. The CTA must be very worried now because as the number of refugees decreases, they will have more difficulty in getting the funds from their sponsors. In order to protect them own pockets, they refuse to let the Tibetans taking Indian citizenship.

In reality, the CTA is not very keen on the free Tibet movement. They are only using it to take money from the sponsors. They have been surviving on easy money, why would they want to work hard? They know very well that if Tibet is independent, they will not have the capability to manage it. Therefore, they will not work hard to make free Tibet a success.

[Alex]

As expected, the number of Tibetans in India will only drop and one-day CTA will have to disband because there will be no more Tibetan for CTA to control. CTA will have to close down and the Tibetan community can have more peace. When CTA is around, there is never peace. They create so much trouble for the Tibetans because the strategy they are using to unite the Tibetans is divide and conquer.

They are afraid that one sect of Buddhism or any group of Tibetans can gain power that can overthrow them and take charge. That is why they created issue such as 3 Karmapas and Dorje Shugden ban to mess with the Tibetans and make them fight within their group and once they are broken into smaller groups, CTA can rule over them.

Old Tibetans that came from Tibet dies off while new young Tibetans escaped to other countries to fight for their future. The number of Tibetans in India will keep on reducing. That is why they are desperate to contain the Tibetans that is left in India. Even when India made the process of becoming an Indian citizen easier, they purposely made it harder on their side to prevent them from losing more Tibetans. CTA operate out of their selfishness and not the welfare of Tibetans. This is for sure.

[Rowntree]

If you have a Sikyong like Lobsang Sangay, the decrease is a given. In his recent tour to Canada, he said,

“25 percent in the social media are Chinese agents deliberately spreading misinformation and rumours to create frictions in the Tibetan community. Another 25per cent are professional critics and they have nothing but criticisms no matter what CTA does. You wonder where do they get time and energy to be always present and always critical in the social media. Another 25 percent are ignorants who are uninformed.

“Final 25 percent are socially responsible critics. Even when they write there is respect and substance in their views. Therefore 75 per cent of what is shared and read in social media is useless.”

Not only have we no idea how Sangay got these figures but the first 25% sounds more like what CTA is doing with the Shugden ban while the second 25% sounds like Robert Thurman and his trolls team are doing on Twitter.

Instead of the 26-city tour, the CTA should just save the money and find ways to have a dialogue with China. Isn't it apparent that no country would actually put themselves in economic danger or be enemies with China for the CTA?

This article made the visit sound like a big deal, but in reality, no other media has picked this up, even Toronto local paper. What kind of tangible results can anyone expect for such a China-bashing trip?

CTA President addresses Tibetan community in Toronto

Toronto: President Dr Lobsang Sangay, Central Tibetan Administration was warmly welcomed by members of Tibetan community at the Tibetan Canadian Culture Center in Toronto. President was accompanied by Representative Ngodup Tsering, Office of Tibet, Washington DC.

The Tibetan Canadian Culture Center was jampacked with Tibetans and supporters.

Informing about his 12 cities and 26-day tour advocating for Tibet, Dr. Sangay felt that his efforts are bringing tangible results – Many leaders are boldly hosting him besides tremendous pressure from China; and for the first time, the White House and the State Department have allowed publishing of news of their officials meeting with the President. Moreover, he has been participating and speaking at the Halifax Security Forum for the last many years to raise Tibet related issues and now, the world leaders are beginning to talk more about China in the Forum.

He said that when China is trying to extend their influence in the world by Belt and Road Initiative, China2025 Plan, developing Artificial Intelligence and acquiring of intellectual property, Tibetan should ever be united in its fight and refrain from infighting, baseless and unnecessary criticism among ourselves.

Advising the public to be socially responsible in sharing information via social media, he said, “75 per cent of what is shared and read in social media is useless. We should be aware of such facts and act responsibly.”

“25 percent in the social media are Chinese agents deliberately spreading misinformation and rumours to create frictions in the Tibetan community. Another 25per cent are professional critics and they have nothing but criticisms no matter what CTA does. You wonder where do they get time and energy to be always present and always critical in the social media. Another 25 percent are ignorants who are uninformed.

“Final 25 percent are socially responsible critics. Even when they write there is respect and substance in their views. Therefore 75 per cent of what is shared and read in social media is useless.”

Dr. Sangay cautioned the Tibetans that providing information about citizens of your country to other country is a crime referring to the Tibetan man in Sweden who was charged with espionage in April 2018. He added that the authorities are well aware of such act and such individual could be caught anytime.

Representative Ngodup Tsering in his address, lauded the arrangements done for the program by the Canadian Tibetan Association of Ontario and thanked the executive members for their effort. He expressed his happiness over grant announcement of $5.4 million education funding from Canada to Central Tibetan Administration which has realized under the leadership of Sikyong Lobsang Sangay. He also reminded the audience of the importance of education and Teaching Tibetan language to Tibetan Children.

This is the second leg of the President’s Canada tour. He will speak at the University of Toronttomorrowow on Party-less and Global-A Case of Tibetan Democracy in Exile.
-Filed by Office of Tibet, DC

https://tibet.net/2018/11/cta-president-addresses-tibetan-community-in-toronto/

[pemachen]

The number will continue to drop. It has been for about a year. It's better to stay in Tibet with huge economic development than risk your life across the Himalaya to be ruled by the Central Tibetan Administration. Many Tibetan refugees are leaving Dharamsala to Europe, USA and other parts of the world too.

[Drolma]

The number will continue to drop. It has been for about a year. It's better to stay in Tibet with huge economic development than risk your life across the Himalaya to be ruled by the Central Tibetan Administration. Many Tibetan refugees are leaving Dharamsala to Europe, USA and other parts of the world too.

I would also expect the number of Tibetans in the exile community in India will continue to drop. Fewer and fewer Tibetans are leaving Tibet to come to India. It actually doesn't make sense anymore to escape from Tibet. The living condition and standard in Tibet have improved so much since the '80s. Life in Tibet is very comfortable now, it will be stupid to come to a foreign land that they are not familiar with and become a stateless refugee.

I think the CTA and Lobsang Sangay are quite worried about the dropping in the number of Tibetans in India. The fewer the Tibetan refugees, the fewer donations they will be getting. This is one of the reasons why they make it so difficult for the Tibetans in India to integrate. If the number of Tibetans in the exile community keeps dropping, eventually there is no need for an administration anymore. The CTA will have to be dissolved.

The Tibetans in India don't see any hope in the Free Tibet movement, anyone will lose hope after 60 years of waiting. Since the CTA is not doing anything for the Tibetans or give a proposal to the Tibetans on their future direction, they will just leave. No one wants to sit around and keep waiting. The Tibetans have totally lost their hope in the CTA.

[SabS]

You know, one thing that stands out so starkly is the fact that CTA is doing everything and everywhere except to confront their failures. Why are they so scared to confront China? If really shows that CTA knows that they had committed many shameful deeds that they have nothing to offer on the negotiation table to have their demands met. So they rather the Dalai Lama's wish to return to China goes unfulfilled rather than confront their shame and ego. All the sponsors of the Dalai Lama should work together to bring CTA under control. Otherwise the Dalai Lama will never ever get his wish to return to Tibet.

[Alex]

You know, one thing that stands out so starkly is the fact that CTA is doing everything and everywhere except to confront their failures. Why are they so scared to confront China? If really shows that CTA knows that they had committed many shameful deeds that they have nothing to offer on the negotiation table to have their demands met. So they rather the Dalai Lama's wish to return to China goes unfulfilled rather than confront their shame and ego. All the sponsors of the Dalai Lama should work together to bring CTA under control. Otherwise the Dalai Lama will never ever get his wish to return to Tibet.

CTA is obviously trying to delay their communication with China because they know they will not be able to get independence from China. They had been fighting for their independence for 60 years and if they still can't get any progress, they will not look good in front of their sponsors and supporters. That is why they rather go around the world talk bad about China and how they supress human rights to push all the blame to China.

Now that Mr Lobsang Sangay had announced that Tibetan cause will go on for another 50 years. This is totally a coward move to give themselves more time to enjoy their life and hide their failures. Most of the CTA members will not be even alive after 50 years. With this, they successful push the responsibility to younger Tibetans who will have to take on all the blame due to the current CTA.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama is clever to approach China with a more possible solution with is autonomy in China, Umaylam. This is a more possible way because China will definitely not let go of Tibet now when they had invested so much into developing it. If CTA wants to get back to Tibet, they have to support His Holiness with his wish and stop supporting Rangzen which is the independence of Tibet which is impossible anymore.

[PrajNa]

There are many reports since a few months ago. It must be very bad. Below is a short excerpt of Indian media reporting about this situation.

The search for home: Why Tibetans are leaving India
For decades, Dharamshala has been the seat of the Tibetan government-in-exile and a mini-Tibet in India. But now, the Tibetans are leaving.
INDIA Updated: Apr 05, 2018 09:37 IST

Everyone has a number to offer. Six for Kunsang, four for Lobsang, 13 for Yangzom.

Everyone also has stories to go with the number. Yangzom offers one about her friend, Thinley (Name changed). A decade after fleeing Tibet to come to India, he started getting desperate to return. A teaching job in Mcleodganj and a circle of friends notwithstanding, the separation from his family in Tibet had started overwhelming him. With the Chinese authorities not relenting, the only way he could go back was to cross over into China, clandestinely, from Nepal. He tried doing exactly that, only to be arrested by Chinese authorities and deported back to India.

Had he been successful, Thinley would have been Yangzom Tsering’s 14th Tibetan friend to have left India in the last few years.

Read the full story here. it doesn't paint a nice picture like how Lobsang Sangay wants us to believe. I think they should report how many Tibetans in exile are actually leaving and going back to Tibet, China!

https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/the-search-for-home-why-tibetans-are-leaving-india/story-fs6G56W52aPEjkFPbS5yYK.html

[Drolma]

There are many reports since a few months ago. It must be very bad. Below is a short excerpt of Indian media reporting about this situation.

The search for home: Why Tibetans are leaving India
For decades, Dharamshala has been the seat of the Tibetan government-in-exile and a mini-Tibet in India. But now, the Tibetans are leaving.
INDIA Updated: Apr 05, 2018 09:37 IST

Everyone has a number to offer. Six for Kunsang, four for Lobsang, 13 for Yangzom.

Everyone also has stories to go with the number. Yangzom offers one about her friend, Thinley (Name changed). A decade after fleeing Tibet to come to India, he started getting desperate to return. A teaching job in Mcleodganj and a circle of friends notwithstanding, the separation from his family in Tibet had started overwhelming him. With the Chinese authorities not relenting, the only way he could go back was to cross over into China, clandestinely, from Nepal. He tried doing exactly that, only to be arrested by Chinese authorities and deported back to India.

Had he been successful, Thinley would have been Yangzom Tsering’s 14th Tibetan friend to have left India in the last few years.

Read the full story here. it doesn't paint a nice picture like how Lobsang Sangay wants us to believe. I think they should report how many Tibetans in exile are actually leaving and going back to Tibet, China!

https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/the-search-for-home-why-tibetans-are-leaving-india/story-fs6G56W52aPEjkFPbS5yYK.html

The CTA is not capable and does not have the intention to give the Tibetans a better future, many Tibetans now see it that's why they are leaving India. In the past, the Tibetans try to cross the border to come to Nepal. Now many Tibetans are crossing the border trying to go back to Tibet. This shows that life in Tibet is so much better than in India.

The Chinese government treats the citizens equally. Everyone is given the same opportunity whether in education or in the job market. Special training and programs are launched to help people to acquire more skills and be more competitive. Many Tibetans in Tibet are living out of poverty now as a result of the effort put in by the Chinese government.

The CTA has not really done much to improve the lives of the Tibetans in exile. After 60 years they are still refugees and Lobsang Sangay expects them to remain as refugees for another 50 years. A cause that takes 110 years to be successful is actually a failure. At the end of the day, the CTA really does not want to free Tibet and give the Tibetans a better future. They just want to make use of the refugee status of the Tibetans to beg for free money and make their wallet fatter. The CTA is no different from the old Tibetan government in Tibet.

[Alex]

There are many reports since a few months ago. It must be very bad. Below is a short excerpt of Indian media reporting about this situation.

The search for home: Why Tibetans are leaving India
For decades, Dharamshala has been the seat of the Tibetan government-in-exile and a mini-Tibet in India. But now, the Tibetans are leaving.
INDIA Updated: Apr 05, 2018 09:37 IST

Everyone has a number to offer. Six for Kunsang, four for Lobsang, 13 for Yangzom.

Everyone also has stories to go with the number. Yangzom offers one about her friend, Thinley (Name changed). A decade after fleeing Tibet to come to India, he started getting desperate to return. A teaching job in Mcleodganj and a circle of friends notwithstanding, the separation from his family in Tibet had started overwhelming him. With the Chinese authorities not relenting, the only way he could go back was to cross over into China, clandestinely, from Nepal. He tried doing exactly that, only to be arrested by Chinese authorities and deported back to India.

Had he been successful, Thinley would have been Yangzom Tsering’s 14th Tibetan friend to have left India in the last few years.

Read the full story here. it doesn't paint a nice picture like how Lobsang Sangay wants us to believe. I think they should report how many Tibetans in exile are actually leaving and going back to Tibet, China!

https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/the-search-for-home-why-tibetans-are-leaving-india/story-fs6G56W52aPEjkFPbS5yYK.html

It is obvious that the situation of Tibetans is much better in Tibet now compared to India. China had invested alot of money into Tibet to make it a better place and also improving the lives of fellow Tibetans. They even offer free self-help classes that teach Tibetans a skill that they can use to make a living in Tibet. In a recent report, the % of poverty in Lhasa had reduced from 25% to 7%! That is an awesome job from China government! They are now extending the anti-poverty effort to other regions as well.

On the other hand, the situation of Tibetan settlements in India has not improved much. It is still the same and Tibetans are still desperately trying to flee to foreign countries to fight for a better future. CTA is still selfish and corrupted with mortgages being paid off in a suspiciously short amount of time in foreign countries. There is no doubt that Tibetans will eventually realise that staying in Tibet is not as bad as the CTA claims as long as they play along with the rules that China has set. This is the same to anyone in the world where they have to follow the rules that are set by the government.

There is nothing wrong for a government to set some rules that the people have to follow and definitely not a breach of human rights. CTA is making a big deal out of it and dramatised it alot to make China looks like a bad guy when they are condemning those people who do not agree to their policies or His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Obviously, CTA is being a double standard here as usual.

[Tracy]

Now that there are only 85,000 Tibetans living in India, will the west still allocate as much fund as before to the CTA? After 60 years of financial support, the CTA has not shown any positive results in freeing Tibet or the preservation of Tibetan culture. The Tibetan community is breaking apart due to the many conflicts created by the CTA. They have proven themselves to be a failure.

Not only that, but the Karmapa has also run away, more people are going against the CTA or lose confidence in them. The Karmapa is very concerned of the preservation and the survival of Karma Kagyu lineage that is why he took the decision to leave India and meet up with the other Karmapa. He knew it very well that the CTA will not resolve this issue.

With the reducing number of Tibetans in the community and loss of confidence of the Tibetans in the CTA, the CTA will have more obstacles. They will slowly lose support from the west and their financial support will be reduced too. This is already the case as the fund given to the CTA by the US has decreased quite a lot in the past year. The CTA will not be able to survive for too long, they will collapse very soon.

[Alex]

Now that there are only 85,000 Tibetans living in India, will the west still allocate as much fund as before to the CTA? After 60 years of financial support, the CTA has not shown any positive results in freeing Tibet or the preservation of Tibetan culture. The Tibetan community is breaking apart due to the many conflicts created by the CTA. They have proven themselves to be a failure.

Not only that, but the Karmapa has also run away, more people are going against the CTA or lose confidence in them. The Karmapa is very concerned of the preservation and the survival of Karma Kagyu lineage that is why he took the decision to leave India and meet up with the other Karmapa. He knew it very well that the CTA will not resolve this issue.

With the reducing number of Tibetans in the community and loss of confidence of the Tibetans in the CTA, the CTA will have more obstacles. They will slowly lose support from the west and their financial support will be reduced too. This is already the case as the fund given to the CTA by the US has decreased quite a lot in the past year. The CTA will not be able to survive for too long, they will collapse very soon.

Can you believe it? There is only 80 Tibetans came from Tibet to India in the year 2018. This is so obvious that CTA failed. Now that even Tibetans who are in Tibet willing to stay with China because they know that they will be in a worse situation if they go to CTA in India. This is a strong proof that China is indeed better than CTA in governing Tibet.

China had really invested a lot into making Tibet a better place. They have invested in building infrastructure in Tibet and also the welfare of Tibetans. China even invested in courses to educate the Tibetans a skill for them to survive. This is how thoughtful they are. They also invested in spiritual places despite them being an atheist government.

China also started a poverty fighting programme and it has been proven to be successful. The percentage of poverty in Tibet has reduced from 25% to 7% in 2018. I think China is doing a very good job that CTA had proven to fail in. Tibet is much better to be under China.

[Drolma]

Even though the Tibetans might be the luckiest refugees in the world, they are also the most unfortunate ones in the world. They are allowed to have their own government in India who is supposed to take care of their welfare but their government only exploit them. The CTA has no intention to give a better future to the Tibetans and they want the Tibetans to continue to remain as refugees so that the CTA can get free money from the donors.

For the past 60 years, the CTA has received millions and millions of dollars from the west but no one knows where did the money go. No other refugees in the world have received so much financial aid. Most of the refugees after a few years would have been accepted by different countries and given the citizenship but for the Tibetans, this is just a dream. The CTA does not want them to become a citizen of another country.

No one likes to remain as refugees or someone without an identity but the CTA does not care. Many Tibetans have realised how the CTA is using them, as a result, they migrate to overseas, go back to Tibet or just integrate and become the citizen of India. As more negative news about the CTA surfaces, they will lose more credibility and trust from the people. Sooner or later, the CTA will collapse, they might not even survive for the next 5 years!