The #Chinesegovernment has imposed severe restrictions on monastic enrollments across the #Amdo region (Ch. Qinghai), with particularly harsh measures at #Dzoge #TaktsangLhamo #KirtiMonastery and #Ngaba Kirti Monastery. Authorities have not only prohibited young children from residing in monasteries but have also barred them from visiting for worship, pilgrimage, or any other religious purposes, according to sources inside Tibet who spoke to #RadioFreeAsia.
A Tibetan source from inside Tibet revealed that following the dismantling of the school at Taktsang Lhamo Kirti Monastery last year, the government appointed surveillance personnel to monitor monastic activities closely. Even the presence of small children within the monastery premises triggers immediate questioning and follow-ups to identify the #monks sheltering them. Individuals found harboring children face interrogation and detainment. Moreover, new #monk enrollments at Ngaba Kirti Monastery now require stringent approvals from both prefecture and county-level authorities, reflecting the intensifying suppression of Tibetan monastic education.
Since October last year, Chinese authorities forcibly shut down the Buddhist preliminary school at Taktsang Lhamo Kirti Monastery, detaining monk students who resisted transfer to government-run schools. Similarly, over 1,000 monk students from Ngaba Kirti Monastery were forcibly relocated to permanent government schools in Ngaba County. Under the pretense of providing basic Chinese language education, the students were subjected to over three months of #CommunistParty political indoctrination. Meanwhile, teachers from Taktsang Lhamo Kirti Monastery have been repeatedly harassed, facing indefinite summons and interrogations under allegations of political dissent.
The Chinese government continues to justify these actions under the claim that minors are not permitted to reside in monasteries. However, the forced closure of monastery schools and the systematic removal of young monk students to government-run institutions—without the consent of parents or monastic authorities—has raised serious concerns about the erosion of Tibetan religious and cultural heritage. Reports indicate that last year alone, over 1,000 young monks from the two Kirti Monasteries were forcibly transferred to state-controlled schools.
In an alarming incident in early September last year, five students forcibly removed from Muge Monastery and placed in government-run schools attempted suicide due to the unbearable physical abuse and torture they endured. These distressing events, observers say, highlight the severe rights violations taking place under the guise of educational reforms, reflecting a broader strategy by the Chinese government to suppress Tibetan religious identity and dismantle monastic institutions.
Human rights organizations and Tibetan advocacy groups have condemned these repressive policies, calling for immediate international intervention. The systematic targeting of Tibetan monasteries not only undermines religious freedoms but also represents a direct assault on Tibetan cultural and spiritual traditions. With Beijing tightening its grip on monastic education, Tibetans fear that their centuries-old spiritual institutions are facing an existential threat.
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