NEW DELHI: In yet another crackdown on free speech, local Chinese authorities in the so-called Golog Tibetan autonomous prefecture detained five Tibetan men for performing a music piece that hailed the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama, media reports said citing research group Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy.
The incident took place Thursday in the so-called Golog Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture when the group of men were performing a song at a musical contest on the popular Chinese video-sharing platform Kuaishou, which is known to have a team of 2000 employees to censor users who violate the regulations set by the Chinese government, reported Phayul.
From among the five detained the identity of only one man has been revealed till now, his name Derab. Chinese authorities while censoring the song detained the individuals. An excerpt from the censored song reads: “Noble Lama was born in Tibet / Performed virtuous deeds in foreign lands / Loving and compassionate Lama / Pray for his swift return.”
The Chinese police grilled the detained men for an entire day. Later, four out of five were released. One unidentified musician and composer still remains in the custody of the Chinese authorities. However, Chinese censors indefinitely banned Derab from taking part in any contests. He was forced to sign a pledge that he would refrain from performing at any festivals or gatherings, reported Phayul.
If the musician Derab would want to perform on any virtual platform hereafter, he will first have to seek permission from the authorities. The media portal citing sources said that this contest was shut down midway by the Chinese censors.
“Usually one could do live streaming for 24 hours without any time limits. Because Derab sang this song about lagya [Tibetan national pride], the live streaming was cut off after about an hour and a half,” the source said.
The Dharamshala-based rights group called for an immediate release of the unidentified composer and condemned the arbitrary detention of the five men. “Kuaishou must refrain from violating the right to freedom of expression of its users and censoring user contents on its platform. Both companies and government regulators have the obligation not to jeopardize the human rights of online users,” Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) demanded.
Meanwhile, the ongoing atrocities against Tibetans inside Tibet have appeared on Chinese social media platforms like Weibo, Wechat, TikTok, and other digital communication channels detailing the abusive behaviors of Chinese police and other officials, the Financial Post reported.
China’s COVID mismanagement and stringent measures under its so-called ‘Zero Covid policy’ have wreaked havoc in Tibet Plateau, while CCP maintains a tight information blockade from the information of and from Tibet.
Chinese President Xi Jinping enforced similar stringent conditions in Tibet as they were in other parts of China earlier under the ‘Zero Covid’ policy. Tibetans are taken to quarantine facilities or forced to stay inside their homes. This has caused them to lose their jobs and source of livelihood, besides mental harassment. (ANI)