MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on Tibet
23.11.2010
pursuant to Rule 122 of the Rules of Procedure
Elmar Brok, José Ignacio Salafranca Sánchez-Neyra, Thomas Mann, Mario Mauro, Cristian Dan Preda, Bernd Posselt, Laima Liucija Andrikienė, Csaba Sógor, Filip Kaczmarek, Lena Kolarska-Bobińska, Róża Gräfin von Thun und Hohenstein, Eija-Riitta Korhola, Monica Luisa Macovei, Elena Băsescu, Tunne Kelam, Bogusław Sonik, Sari Essayah, Martin Kastler on behalf of the PPE Group
See also joint motion for a resolution RC-B7-0637/2010
B7‑0644/2010
European Parliament resolution on Tibet
The European Parliament,
– having regard to Rule 122 of its Rules of Procedure,
A. emphasising that respect for human rights, the freedom of identity, culture and religion is a founding principle of the European Union and a priority of the European Union’s foreign policy,
B. aware of the protests by Tibetan school and college students over Chinese officials' plans to limit the use of Tibetan language by changing the language medium of instruction to Chinese,
C. stressing that the Tibetan language, as one of the four oldest and most original languages of Asia, is a fundamental catalyst for Tibetan identity, culture and religion but also, together with all Tibetan culture, represents an irreplaceable part of our world heritage,
D. reaffirming that languages express the social and cultural approaches of a community,
E. condemning the increased crackdown on the exercise of cultural, linguistic, religious and other fundamental freedoms of Tibetans,
F. expressing its concern over the attempts to combat, devalue and destroy the Tibetan language,
G. emphasising that the Chinese education policy is one of the most important reasons for Tibetan fears over identity, religion and culture,
H. taking the view that the main language for teaching and learning should remain Tibetan but recognizing that learning Chinese is necessary for students in Tibet today but that Han Chinese living in Tibet should learn Tibetan at school,
I. mindful that the dominance of the Chinese language is becoming a major barrier for Tibetans' job perspectives, especially for students,
J. recognizing that linguistic obstacles are a hindrance to many rural Tibetans in their search for jobs,
K. stressing the fact that for a successful bilingual education Tibetan must be the domestic language,
L. also stressing the fact that most Tibetan students have never been in a Chinese-language environment and therefore are not able to communicate in Chinese,
M. concerned that there could be a decline in the quality of education for most middle school students,
1. Calls upon the Government of the People’s Republic of China:
(a) to preserve and protect the distinct cultural, religious and national identity of the six million Tibetan people,
(b) to halt repression of the Tibetan language within the education system,
(c) to encourage a policy which includes teaching of both languages, Chinese and Tibetan,
(d) to ensure that school subjects should only be taught in Tibetan as the mother tongue, which is the most suitable,
(e) to act in accordance with the Article 10 of the Law on Regional National Autonomy, which guarantees nationalities to use their own languages, therefore the PRC, as a highly important UN member state should give due consideration to its credibility,
(f) to ensure that students' right to protest be respected,
(g) to engage on language matters in particular with the Dalai Lama's representatives, as part of their process of dialogue;
2. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the
Commission, the Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative
of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the governments
and parliaments of the Member States, the government and parliament
of the People's Republic of China, and His Holiness the Dalai Lama.