Senior Chinese leader Wang Huning tours Tibet, stresses ethnic unity, stability

China's fourth-ranking leader, Wang Huning, concluded a four-day visit to Tibet this week, stressing the importance of safeguarding social stability and enforcing a new ethnic unity law. During his tour of the capital Lhasa and the Ngari prefecture bordering India and Nepal, Wang urged Tibetan Buddhism to adapt to socialist society and align more closely with Communist Party objectives.

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To govern Tibet is foremost to stabilise Tibet.

Wang, a member of the Politburo Standing Committee, stated, "To govern Tibet is foremost to stabilise Tibet." He emphasized the need to "consolidate a political and social environment of unity and stability." His visit comes weeks after China enacted a new law on ethnic unity, which has drawn criticism from the U.S. and the European Union. This law provides Beijing with a framework to act against individuals outside its borders deemed to undermine "ethnic unity and progress or inciting ethnic separatism."

Wang also called for the "continuous guidance of Tibetan Buddhism to adapt to socialist society." This aligns with Beijing's broader policy of "Sinicisation," which seeks to integrate religious practices more closely with Chinese culture and Communist Party doctrines. State broadcaster CCTV showed Wang visiting a monastery and examining historical texts, with display boards promoting the Sinicisation of Tibetan Buddhism and advocating for increased law-based management of temples.

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consolidate a political and social environment of unity and stability

The visit highlights Beijing's focus on control and ideological alignment in Tibet. International human rights groups and Tibetan exiles frequently describe China's rule in the region as oppressive, an accusation that Beijing consistently rejects. Wang's trip to Tibet follows a similar emphasis on stability and ethnic unity during his visit to Xinjiang in June.

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to continuously guide Tibetan Buddhism to adapt to socialist society in line with the requirement to ... systematically promote the Sinicisation of religion in China