Tibetan Protests Against Dam Project Lead to Crackdown, Beatings, and Arrests, BBC Reports

This year, hundreds of Tibetans demonstrating against a Chinese dam project faced a severe crackdown, resulting in some individuals being beaten and sustaining serious injuries, as discovered by the BBC through various sources and authenticated video evidence. Demonstrations of this nature are exceptionally uncommon in Tibet, a region China has maintained stringent control over since its annexation in the 1950s. The occurrence of these protests underscores China’s contentious strategy of constructing dams within an area historically considered sensitive. Reports of detentions and physical assaults emerged soon after the incidents in February. Subsequently, authorities intensified restrictions, impeding verification of the accounts, particularly for journalists who lack unrestricted access to Tibet. However, the BBC dedicated months to locating Tibetan sources whose relatives and acquaintances were apprehended and assaulted. BBC Verify additionally analyzed satellite images and confirmed the authenticity of leaked videos depicting widespread protests and monks appealing to officials for leniency. These sources reside outside China and are not affiliated with advocacy organizations. Nevertheless, they requested anonymity due to safety concerns. When approached for comment, the Chinese embassy in the UK neither confirmed nor refuted the protests or the subsequent crackdown. However, it stated: “China is a country governed by the rule of law, and strictly safeguards citizens’ rights to lawfully express their concerns and provide opinions or suggestions.” The demonstrations, succeeded by the enforcement action, occurred in a Tibetan-inhabited area within Sichuan province. For an extended period, Chinese officials have intended to construct the extensive Gangtuo dam and hydropower facility, also referred to as Kamtok in Tibetan, within the valley spanning Dege (Derge) and Jiangda (Jomda) counties. Upon completion, the dam’s reservoir is projected to inundate a region holding cultural and religious importance for Tibetans, encompassing multiple villages and ancient monasteries housing sacred artifacts. Among these, the 700-year-old Wangdui (Wontoe) Monastery possesses distinct historical significance due to its walls adorned with uncommon Buddhist murals. The Gangtuo dam project is also expected to displace thousands of Tibetans. The BBC has reviewed what seems to be a public tender document detailing the relocation of 4,287 inhabitants to accommodate the dam. The BBC reached out to an official named in the tender document and to Huadian, the state-owned company reportedly constructing the dam. Neither provided a response. The initial approval for the dam’s construction dates back to 2012, as per a letter from United Nations special rapporteurs addressed to the Chinese government. This letter, dated July 2024, expressed apprehension regarding the dam’s “irreversible impact” on thousands of individuals and the surrounding environment. The letter indicates that residents were not “consulted in a meaningful way” about the dam from the project’s inception. For example, they received insufficient information, which was not provided in the Tibetan language. The government also assured them that the project would proceed only if 80% of them consented, but “there is no evidence this consent was ever given,” the letter further states, noting that residents attempted to voice concerns about the dam on multiple occasions. Chinese authorities, however, refuted these claims in their communication to the UN. “The relocation of the villages in question was carried out only after full consultation of the opinions of the local residents,” declared the Permanent Mission of the People’s Republic of China to the United Nations office in a letter from September 2024. It further mentioned: “Local government and project developers funded the construction of new homes and provided subsidies for grazing, herding and farming. As for any cultural relics, they were relocated in their entirety.” However, the BBC has learned from two Tibetan sources that, in February, officials informed them of impending eviction, offering scant details regarding resettlement alternatives and compensation. This situation provoked profound apprehension, leading villagers and Buddhist monks to organize protests, notwithstanding their awareness of the risks of a crackdown. The most significant demonstration involved hundreds congregating outside a government edifice in Dege. In a video segment acquired and authenticated by the BBC, demonstrators are audible urging authorities to halt the evictions and permit them to remain. Independently, a contingent of residents approached visiting officials, imploring them to abandon plans for the dam’s construction. The BBC has acquired footage seemingly depicting this event, confirming its occurrence in the village of Xiba. The recording displays red-robed monks and villagers kneeling on a dusty thoroughfare, extending a thumbs-up gesture, a customary Tibetan method of soliciting mercy. Historically, the Chinese government has promptly suppressed opposition to its authority, particularly in Tibetan areas where it is vigilant against anything that might foster separatist feelings. This instance proved no exception. Officials rapidly initiated their crackdown, apprehending hundreds of individuals during protests and simultaneously conducting raids on residences throughout the valley, as reported by one of our sources. A single unverified yet widely circulated video clip seemingly depicts Chinese police officers pushing a group of monks on a road, in what is believed to be an arrest procedure. Numerous individuals were held for weeks, and some endured severe beatings, according to our Tibetan sources whose family members and acquaintances were affected by the crackdown. A source provided new information regarding the interrogations. He informed the BBC that a childhood friend was apprehended and questioned for multiple days. “He was asked questions and treated nicely at first. They asked him ‘who asked you to participate, who is behind this’.” “Then, when he couldn’t give them [the] answers they wanted, he was beaten by six or seven different security personnel over several days.” His friend suffered only slight injuries and was released within a few days. However, others did not fare as well. An additional source informed the BBC that over 20 of his family members and acquaintances were detained for their involvement in the protests, among them an elderly individual exceeding 70 years of age. “Some of them sustained injuries all over their body, including in their ribs and kidneys, from being kicked and beaten… some of them were sick because of their injuries,” he stated. Comparable allegations of physical mistreatment and assaults during arrests have appeared in Tibetan media reports from abroad. The UN letter also records accounts of detentions and the application of force against hundreds of protesters, asserting they were “severely beaten by the Chinese police, resulting in injuries that required hospitalisation”. Following the crackdown, Tibetans in the region experienced even stricter limitations, as understood by the BBC. External communication became more restricted, and surveillance intensified. Individuals who can still be reached have been reluctant to speak, fearing another wave of repression, sources indicate. The initial source reported that while some released demonstrators were eventually permitted to travel to other parts of Tibetan territory, others received directives limiting their mobility. This situation has created difficulties for individuals requiring hospital visits for medical care and for nomadic communities needing to traverse pastures with their livestock, he explained. The second source mentioned his last contact with relatives and friends was at the close of February: “When I got through, they said not to call any more as they would get arrested. They were very