Chinese officials yesterday defended their labor practices in Tibet, in the face of growing concerns about rights abuses in the region and Washington’s appointment of a senior official to scrutinize Tibetan affairs.
Tibet Governor Qi Zhala (齊扎拉) told a news conference in Lhasa that forced labor transfer “does not exist,” maintaining that the local government was focused on “increasing the idle workforce’s income through job-skills training.”
Qi, who was speaking about poverty-alleviation efforts, said that the Tibetan government had provided travel subsidies for people to work in other regions, and that they were free to come and go.
Photo: Reuters
The news conference came hours after US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo named US Assistant Secretary of the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Robert Destro as a special coordinator for Tibetan issues.
Destro is to be responsible for advancing dialogue between Beijing and the Dalai Lama, and protecting the religious, cultural and linguistic identity of Tibetans, the US Department of State said.
The post had been vacant since January 2017, according to the US Commission on International Religious Freedom.
Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Zhao Lijian (趙立堅) at a daily news briefing in Beijing called the move to install Destro “political manipulation” meant to “interfere in China’s internal affairs and destabilize Tibet.”
Tibet and the neighboring region of Xinjiang have long endured intense social, security and religious controls, as China seeks to suppress what it calls “terrorist” and “separatist” elements.
Researcher Adrian Zenz last month released a report alleging that China was instituting a mass labor system in Tibet similar to the one in Xinjiang.
“The United States remains concerned with the PRC’s repression of the Tibetan community, including the lack of meaningful autonomy, the deteriorating human rights situation in Tibetan areas, and severe restrictions on Tibetans’ religious freedom and cultural traditions within China,” Pompeo said in a statement.
China’s policies toward Tibet have long been a subject of international dispute, with support for the region’s autonomy and the Dalai Lama often a bipartisan issue in Washington.
The US in July imposed travel restrictions on Chinese officials determined to be “substantially involved” in restricting access to Tibet.
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
NO CHANGE: The TRA makes clear that the US does not consider the status of Taiwan to have been determined by WWII-era documents, a former AIT deputy director said The American Institute in Taiwan’s (AIT) comments that World War-II era documents do not determine Taiwan’s political status accurately conveyed the US’ stance, the US Department of State said. An AIT spokesperson on Saturday said that a Chinese official mischaracterized World War II-era documents as stating that Taiwan was ceded to the China. The remarks from the US’ de facto embassy in Taiwan drew criticism from the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation, whose director said the comments put Taiwan in danger. The Chinese-language United Daily News yesterday reported that a US State Department spokesperson confirmed the AIT’s position. They added that the US would continue to
The National Development Council (NDC) yesterday unveiled details of new regulations that ease restrictions on foreigners working or living in Taiwan, as part of a bid to attract skilled workers from abroad. The regulations, which could go into effect in the first quarter of next year, stem from amendments to the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及僱用法) passed by lawmakers on Aug. 29. Students categorized as “overseas compatriots” would be allowed to stay and work in Taiwan in the two years after their graduation without obtaining additional permits, doing away with the evaluation process that is currently required,
RSS