this post was submitted on 28 Feb 2025

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201

Tibet as one of the most linguistically diverse places in the world is in danger of extinction over China's assimilationist state policy (theconversation.com)

submitted 3 days ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

21 comments fedilink hide all child comments

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/30223092

Tibetans have worked to protect the Tibetan language and resisted efforts to enforce Mandarin Chinese. Yet, Tibetan children are losing their language through enrolment in state boarding schools where they are being educated nearly exclusively in Mandarin Chinese. Tibetan is typically only taught a few times a week – not enough to sustain the language.

[...]

[Beijing's] Government policy forces all Tibetans to learn and use Mandarin Chinese. Those who speak only Tibetan have a harder time finding work and are faced with discrimination and even violence from the dominant Han ethnic group.

[...]

Meanwhile, support for Tibetan language education has slowly been whittled away: the government even recently banned students from having private Tibetan lessons or tutors on their school holidays.

Linguistic minorities in Tibet all need to learn and use Mandarin. But many also need to learn Tibetan to communicate with other Tibetans: classmates, teachers, doctors, bureaucrats or bosses.

[...]

The government refuses to provide any opportunities to use and learn minority languages like Manegacha. It also tolerates constant discrimination and violence against Manegacha speakers by other Tibetans.

These [Chinese] assimilationist state policies are causing linguistic diversity across Tibet to collapse. As these minority languages are lost, people’s mental and physical health suffers and their social connections and communal identities are destroyed.

[...]

top 21 comments

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[–] [email protected] 31 points 3 days ago (1 children)

"Assimilationist state policy" is a funny euphemism for "cultural genocide".

[–] [email protected] 16 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (1 children)

“genocide” is basically a banned word at this point.

Thanks Nethanyahu.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Well, thank the ML Borg too for making it a political weapon, and not about people dying.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Borg?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

A Star Trek group of hive mind cyborgs essentially. Unless they were talking about something else somehow...

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

So what you’re saying is the crowd who tried to use the palestinian genocide to paint russia and iran as saviours and america and the west and the pariahs?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 day ago

With the specific goal of destroying the west and not at all because of genocide. Yes. That ML Hive Mind.

[–] [email protected] 24 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

We are the Han.
You will be assimilated.
Your biological and sociological distinctiveness will be erased.
Your culture will adapt to service us.
Resistance is futile.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 days ago

The systematic erasure of Tibetan languages is cultural genocide under the guise of modernization.

🐱🐱🐱🐱🐱

[+] [email protected] -8 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Damn I'm more pro-China than any other country but I absolutely hate that they do this.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 days ago (1 children)

China number one, for real??

[–] [email protected] -3 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (1 children)

I knew this was gonna get dislikes. Have you seen their infrastructure? Their technology? Their scientific advancements, Their social security, their political involvement as citizens...
I'm not saying I'm pro-China period, just comparing them to other countries. The ccp did a lot of things wrong and I'm against that. I'm also not a black and white thinker.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (1 children)

I haven't voted for your comment. I'm just wondering how a police state dystopia is THE favourite. As you said, considering a multitude of pros and cons, isn't there anything else?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago) (3 children)

Would you ever believe it if it wasn't a police state dystopia? I wouldn't feel this way if I believed it was. Have you gone out of your way to do extensive research on the politics, history and quality of life in China over the course of months or years and looked for multiple sources from multiple parts of the world? Or have you just read/watched the news and had history class? Maybe found a book in a library one time? You don't need to question whether I love dystopias. Do question if I know or at least think I know what you know.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 days ago

Have you been there? Its a police state dystopia

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Can it be a police state dystopia if the people self censor to stay out of trouble, corruption, and racism run rampant?

That said, the PRC is a complicated place and the standard of living and health conditions of pretty much everyone have gone from mostly poor to generally good over a single generation. I think it's fair, yet sad, to say that wouldn't have happened any other way.

The public transport is amazing. And if you're willing to conform, and be Han or a model minority in a traditionally Han dominant area, you're living well. Purchasing power is generally high, and even the vast vast majority of the poorest people have houses and food.

Source: speak Mandarin and worked in China for a few years.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 day ago (1 children)

I'm so jealous you were there and can speak the language! I'm having a hard time. :')

I heard that the re-education camps are actually high quality spaces with classes that explain Chinese culture in a positive way, should they want to fit in but people can practice their own customs too. they just want them to adopt something, anything. I'm trying to word that carefully. I can't remember the name of my source right now, I'd have to check later. So yeah but if you put it that way, it doesn't sound so bad. You can judge it but it's not harmful if that's the case. Regardless, I'm skeptical because of how convincing certain other sources are too. Yeah it sucks how racist the country can be.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 day ago

I've not seen inside one, so I can't say. From the outside they do look a lot like prisons though.

But the word 学校 (school) is essentially a swear word in Xinjiang now and has an impact on the atmosphere. It irks me that pretty much all coverage and reporting is done for US benefits and as a stick to beat China with. Not actually out of care or respect for the ethnic groups going into them.

China isn't a big, irrational, evil. It's a big place led by people making decisions. You won't find any nation-state, let alone a large powerful one acting in a moral way.

I hope you can find a chance to visit it for a time. It's a cliche, but English teaching is an easy route to take to get in and have a chance to see China for yourself.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

It's not about the messenger, you are not attacked and don't need to react as such.

My comment was that wouldn't there be other options if one considers "extensive research on politics, history and quality of life", multiple sources etc. anywhere.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Actually no, as far as I'm aware of. I'm really into global econ stats and none come close to China, it's really remarkable.That's what caused me to research it more. Sorry if my comment sounded butthurt.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 days ago

No worries. I'm just curious. There has definitely been advancements. And then the various rankings and indexes on happiness, equality, freedom, health, other qualities paint a different picture. Of course one could ponder if some of them are biased, and still, maybe an aggregate of all could provide value...