MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on the cases of the Larung Gar Tibetan Buddhist Academy and Ilham Tohti
13.12.2016 - (2016/3026(RSP))
pursuant to Rule 135 of the Rules of Procedure
Molly Scott Cato, Heidi Hautala, Igor Šoltes, Michèle Rivasi, Bodil Valero, Barbara Lochbihler on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group
See also joint motion for a resolution RC-B8-1346/2016
B8‑1353/2016
European Parliament resolution on the cases of the Larung Gar Tibetan Buddhist Academy and Ilham Tohti
The European Parliament,
- having regard to its previous resolutions on China with regard, in particular to the one of 14 June 2012 on the human rights situation in Tibet, the one of 16 December 2015 on EU-China relations, the one of 13 March 2014 on EU priorities for the 25th session of the UN Human Rights Council and the one of 24 November 2016 the case of Gui Minhai, jailed publisher in China,
- having regard to the statement by the Spokesperson of the HR/VP on the sentencing of Ilham Tohti of 23 September 2014,
- having regard to the EU-China Strategic Partnership launched in 2003 and to the European Commission and EEAS joint communication to the European Parliament and the Council entitled ‘Elements for a new EU strategy on China’, of 22 June 2016,
- having regard to the adoption of the new national security law by the Standing Committee of the Chinese National People’s Congress of 1 July 2015, and the publication of the second draft of a new Foreign NGO Management law on 5 May 2015,
- having regard to the EU-China dialogue on human rights launched in 1995 and the 34nd round held in Beijing on 30 November-1st December 2015,
- having regard to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights of 16 December 1966,
- having regard to Rule 135 of the Rules of Procedure,
A. whereas the Larung Gar Institute, the largest Tibetan Buddhist centre in the world, is currently facing wide-scale demolition by the Chinese government; whereas according to the Chinese authorities this demolition is necessary in order to carry out “correction and rectification”,
B. whereas on July 20, 2016, China initiated its plan to destroy Larung Gar and evict and displace at least half of its more than 10,000 residents by September 2017; whereas before the demolitions began, an estimated 1,500 police and paramilitary troops were moved to nearby villages and towns; whereas the authorities have banned tourists from visiting Larung Gar and local residents from taking pictures or video of the demolitions,
C. whereas Larung Gar Buddhist Institute, located in Serthar County in Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, was founded in 1980 and went on to become one of the largest centres of Buddhist studies in the world,
D. whereas three nuns are reported to have committed suicide at the Larung Gar Institute since the beginning of the demolition of the Buddhist Institute,
E. whereas since about April, up to 1,000 nuns at Yachen Gar, another major monastic encampment in Pelyul (Beiyu) county, Kardze prefecture in Sichuan province, have been compelled to leave the institution and return to their homes in the Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR), west of Yachen Gar,
F. whereas respect for human rights, freedom of identity, culture, religion and association are founding principles of the EU and of its foreign policy,
G. whereas more than 140 Tibetans, mostly monks and nuns, have reportedly set themselves on fire since 2009 in protest against restrictive Chinese policies in Tibet and in support of the return of the Dalai Lama and the right to religious freedom in the Aba/Ngaba county prefecture in Sichuan Province and other parts of the Tibetan plateau,
H. whereas on 6 December a court in Sichuan’s Ngaba Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture sentenced seven Tibetans, among whom both monks and laypeople, to jail terms ranging from five to 14 years, without specifying charges but supposedly for celebrating last year’s 80th birthday of the Dalai Lama,
I. whereas the envoys of His Holiness the Dalai Lama have approached the Government of the People’s Republic of China to find a peaceful and mutually beneficial solution to the issue of Tibet; whereas no progress has been made in the resolution of the Tibetan crisis in the last few years, as the last round of peace talks took place in 2010 and talks are currently frozen,
J. whereas Ilham Tohti, a professor at one of China’s major universities, was arrested in January 2014 and following a two day trial in September 2014, was sentenced to life imprisonment on trumped up charges of advocating separatism and terrorism; whereas his appeal was held at short notice and his lawyers were unable to prepare or attend the trial; whereas the hearing was not public,
K. whereas Ilham Tohti, who is also a widely-acclaimed human rights defender and advocate, is imprisoned in China’s Xinjiang region under extremely harsh and punishing conditions; whereas his present physical appearance shows debilitating signs of neglect and ill-treatment,
L. whereas Ilham Tohti has always been outspoken about the need for dialogue between the Chinese and Uighur peoples and about the need for the Chinese Government to respect the full range of human rights to which the Uyghur are entitled; whereas Ilham Tohti is one of the four 2016 Sakharov prize nominees and is also the 2016 Martin Ennals Laureate selected by 10 leading human rights NGOs,
M. whereas since President Xi Jinping assumed power in March 2013 the human rights situation in China itself continues to deteriorate with the government stepping up its hostility toward peaceful dissent, freedoms of expression and religion, and the rule of law; whereas the Chinese authorities have detained and prosecuted hundreds of human rights defenders,
N. whereas the Chinese government has drafted or passed a slew of new laws that cast public activism and peaceful criticism of the government as state security threats, strengthen censorship, surveillance and control of individuals and social groups and deter individuals from campaigning for human rights with regard, in particular, to the State Security Law, passed on July 1, 2015, the draft Counterterrorism Law, the draft Cybersecurity Law, and the draft Foreign NGO Management Law,
O. whereas in its strategic framework on human rights and democracy, the EU pledges that human rights, democracy, and rule of law will be promoted “in all areas of the EU's external actions without exception” and that the EU will “place human rights at the centre of its relations with all third countries including strategic partners.”,
1. Urges the Chinese authorities to stop all demolition in Larung Gar, engage constructively with the Tibetan Buddhist community and eventually address concerns about overcrowded religious institutes by allowing Tibetans to establish more institutes and build more facilities;
2. Calls on the Chinese authorities to immediately investigate reports that local officials are threatening family members of monks and nuns to compel their relatives to leave their chosen places of religious study and urges the government to allow any nuns forced to leave Larung Gar, Yachen Gar or other religious institutions to continue their religious activities;
3. Calls on the Chinese government to respect its own constitution with regard, in particular, to article 36 that recognizes the right to freedom of religious belief, and international and legal obligations and permit full freedom of religious practice;
4. Reiterates its call on the Government of the People’s Republic of China to engage with His Holiness the Dalai Lama and members of the elected Tibetan leadership and expresses its support for a peaceful resolution of the issue of Tibet through dialogue and negotiations with a view to granting Tibet a genuine autonomy within the framework of the Constitution of the PRC;
5. Expresses, in this respect, its disappointment that the Government of the People’s Republic of China has been unwilling to continue the dialogue with the envoys of His Holiness the Dalai Lama since January 2010;
6. Condemns, moreover, the anti-Buddhism campaigns carried out via the ‘patriotic education’ approach, including measures to state-manage Tibetan Buddhist Monasteries; is concerned that China’s criminal law is being abused to persecute Tibetans and Buddhists, whose religious activities are equated with ‘separatism’, deplores the fact that the environment for practising Buddhism in Tibet has worsened significantly after the Tibetan protests of March 2008, with the Chinese government adopting a more pervasive approach to ‘patriotic education’;
7. Expresses its deep concern at the degradation of Tibet’s environment; underlines that the Tibetan plateau is warming up fast, and that this may cause the melting of Tibet’s glaciers, many of which feed the largest rivers in Asia;
8. . Calls on the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of the EU to increase and intensify efforts to address the human rights situation of the Tibetans in the framework of the EU-China Human Rights Dialogue;
9. Expresses its deep concern at the current health conditions of Ilham Tohti that although is a resident of Beijing was tried in Xinjiang and is serving his sentence there and calls for the improvement of his prison treatment and his eventual release;
10. Underlines that the right to a fair trial for Ilham Tohti was not respected; highlights that his family may only visit him every three months and urges the Chinese authorities to respect the norm of once per month;
11. Points out that Ilham Tohti is widely recognized as one of the foremost Uyghur intellectuals in the People’s Republic of China. and stresses that the persecution of a moderate person such as Ilham Tohti risks the alienation of the wider Uighur community and leaves little space for dialogue;
12. Urges senior EU officials to publicly call for the release of Ilham Tohti’s each time they meet with senior Chinese officials and furthermore calls on the EEAS and EU member states to request to visit Ilham Tohti in prison;
13. Points out that Xinjiang is caught in a vicious circle with violent separatist and extremist groups among the Turkic-speaking Muslim Uighurs, who do not, however, represent the vast majority, and, on the other hand, Beijing, that for the sake of stability, is increasingly responding to social unrest with repression, heightening the presence of its security apparatus in the region, alienating many Uighurs from Beijing and nourishing anti-Han-Chinese sentiments among the Uighur population; calls on the Chinese authorities to make every effort to develop a genuine dialogue with the Uighur community, and to protect the cultural identity of the Uighur population;
14. Invites the EU High Representative and EU Member States to adopt Foreign Affairs Council conclusions on China that stress the critical importance of human rights in the EU-China relationship, convey a clear sense of concern about the negative trends in China in this regard, along with an expectation that the Chinese authorities take specific steps in response; stresses that such conclusions would serve to bind the 28 EU Member States and EU institutions to a common message and approach with regards to human rights in China;
15. Notes that a strong contradiction exists between the official Chinese aspiration to the universality of human rights and the worsening human rights situation; points out that the recent worsening of the situation of human rights and freedoms in China that started in 2013 has intensified an already existing crackdown over the population, limiting the space for expression and peaceful advocacy for civil society even further; expresses its deep concern at the arrest, trial and sentencing of numerous civil rights activists, human rights defenders and government critics;
16. Believes that strong ongoing EU-China relations must provide an effective platform for a mature, meaningful and open human rights dialogue based on mutual respect;
17. Takes the view that in order to be truly effective, and to implement the EU’s own Strategic Framework on Human Rights and Democracy, adopted in June 2012, the EU should clearly articulate its concerns and set out transparent benchmarks for advancing human rights in China as a means to ensure that EU messaging reaches not just Chinese government officials, but also people across China and Europe;
18. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the EEAS, the Council and the Commission and to the President, the Government and Parliament of the People's Republic of China.