China is only interested in exploiting the natural wealth of Tibet and is changing its demography in an attempt to bring the roof of the world under its influence, according to rights groups.
These groups say that China has imposed heavy-handed control in Tibet and has systemically repressed fundamental rights, and tightened control over civil society.
An over 40-page white paper published by China in 2021 titled ‘Tibet since 1951: Liberation, Development’ highlights the neglect by China of environmental factors.
The focus of the paper includes development, building more dams, and several infrastructural initiatives, however, it does not take the environmental destruction into consideration, Policy Research Group (poreg) reported.
Despite talking about the development plans that are being carried out in Tibet, the paper does not highlight the damage it has inflicted on its ecology.
It talks about clean energy-generated electricity saying that it has reduced the emissions of carbon dioxide, but the Tibetan people did not benefit from such initiatives and they are without power during the night.
The energy is instead transmitted to the lighthouses in China and is used to run the machines in the country.
The three-step plan of China’s President Xi Jinping calls for crushing dissent, sinicization of Tibet, and fortification of Tibet, the article read.
The ecology of Tibet has been affected by the big dams that are constructed. Tibet has been made a dump zone. The environmental destruction of Tibet by China might lead to the drying up of rivers, melting of glaciers, thawing of permafrost, flooding, and loss of grasslands.
President Xi Jingping did not participate in the Conference of Parties (CoP) 26 summit held at Glasgow last November which aimed to develop an action plan for environmental degradation.
The article read that his absence drew criticism as the carbon emission in China has been on a rise and it is the largest polluting nation.
Mining activities have led to a rise in pollution in the region. The river close to Lhasa, which is the lifeline of the people of Dolkar and Zibuk villages of Lhundup County, is being polluted by the Gyama Copper Poly-metallic mine.
Several rivers such as the Brahmaputra, Mekong, Yangtze, and Indus that originate from Tibet are being affected despite being an important means of transportation connecting Tibet to the oceans of the world.
A water crisis has been created by the ‘Three Gorges dam’ as it obstructs the water flows to the lower riparian regions.
The ‘stored hydro’ concept which releases waters from dams at different heights without relying on the water cycle and the natural flow of rivers has been degrading the flora and fauna, it read.
The destruction in Tibet might lead to the destruction of the whole world.