Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2011-10-27-Speech-4-302-000"
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"en.20111027.21.4-302-000"2
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"Mr President, EU-China relations have developed positively during 2011. Our strategic partnership has strengthened in many areas. However, there are still sensitive issues where open disagreements occur from time to time, and Tibet is certainly one of these.
Since the unrest in Tibet in March 2008, this House has discussed the evolving situation on many occasions. While the EU does not question that Tibet is an integral part of China, at the same time we are greatly concerned about the lack of progress on the ground, as is illustrated by the recent distressing cases of self-immolation of ten monks and nuns.
The EU raised its concerns regarding Tibet at the last EU-China human rights dialogue on 16 June. The EU focused on increasing legal restrictions on religious practice in Tibet, limitations on the teaching of the Tibetan language, the ongoing official campaign against Tibetan intellectuals and cultural figures, the harsh measures taken against any Tibetan attempting to protest against official policies and the impact on Tibetan culture of the mass forced resettlement of nomads. Furthermore, the EU expressed its anxiety regarding the situation at the Kirti monastery, and in particular at the self-immolation of Phuntsok Jarutsang, and called on the Chinese authorities to allow all Tibetans, including monks, to exercise their cultural and religious rights without hindrance, and to refrain from the use of force against peaceful protest.
The Chinese authorities dismissed the EU’s concerns and emphasised that Chinese policies in Tibet had led to economic development and enormous benefits. China claimed that the series of self-immolations is instigated by forces that ‘want to destabilise Tibet’.
While taking note of the Chinese position, the EU can only conclude that the growing number of Tibetan monks choosing to take such tragic steps demonstrates the profound depth of feeling among many Tibetans that their religious, linguistic and cultural rights are not being respected.
The EU acknowledges the priority the Chinese leadership gives to maintaining territorial integrity and economic growth in minority areas such as Tibet. However, as the recent tragic events show all too clearly, economic development is not a panacea. We therefore strongly encourage China to create conditions which will allow the Tibetan people to fully exercise their political, religious and cultural rights in line with the Chinese constitution and the Chinese legal provisions on local autonomy.
Furthermore, we hope that the dialogue between the envoys of the Dalai Lama and the Chinese Government – which, regrettably, has been frozen – will resume soon, since we strongly believe that only this dialogue can lead to positive results, by aiming at resolving outstanding issues in a peaceful and sustainable way for Tibet.
Finally, I want to reassure this Chamber that the EU will continue to follow up this important matter in all other appropriate meetings with the Chinese authorities, including the next session of the EU-China human rights dialogue."@en1
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