China has increased the Communist Party’s indoctrination of Tibetan clergy to cement the government’s control over religion and weaken the Dalai Lama’s influence.
Chinese authorities subjected Tibetan monks and nuns to three days of political “training” in the Tibetan capital of Lhasa to ensure that they adhere to Communist Party policies, especially with regard to religion, according to The Associated Press.
Tibetan clergy also serve as instructors in government policy to Tibetan citizens. The training, which ended on June 2, therefore instructed them to be “reliable in politics and take a clear-cut and firm stance,” in line with president Xi Jinping’s campaign to “sinicize” religion in China. (RELATED: China To Ensure That Catholic Leadership Is In Beijing’s Control)
Chinese authorities also intended the training to weaken the influence of the Dalai Lama, who serves as the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists and who has earned the ire of China’s government by calling for Tibet’s independence. Chinese authorities have labeled the Dalai Lama a “violent separatist” and a “demon.” (RELATED: Mercedes Is So Afraid Of China’s Power They’re Apologizing For A Quote They Dropped On Instagram)
“It is important for United Front Work officials to improve their ability first, especially in regions such as Tibetan areas where the Dalai Lama clique intends to penetrate,” Zhu Weiqun, former chairman of the Ethnic and Religious Affairs Committee of the legislature’s advisory body, said according to Chinese Communist Party newspaper Global Times.
The communist indoctrination campaign is one part of the implementation of Jinping’s efforts to bring all religions in China in line with atheistic party teachings and policies and thus ensure their loyalty to the state. Other facets of the “sinicization of religion” have included the persecution and demolition of Christian churches and the crackdown on adherence to Islamic practices among the Uyghur people.
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