March 29, 2018 -- The China Society for Human Rights Studies held a conference themed on "The Protection and Development of Tibetan Culture" on Mar.7 during the 37th meeting of United Nations Human Rights Council, introducing the efforts and fruits that Tibet has achieved in protecting and developing Tibetan traditional culture. More than 60 delegates from governments, international organizations, the NGOs, experts and journalists attended the conference. It is the first time that a Chinese NGO holds a conference themed on Tibet at the Palais des Nations, Geneva. Four native Tibetan scholars and Bressler, a French writer who have published books on Tibet, gave speeches and interpreted the topics that have attracted great attention, with the aim to let the world better understand Tibetan culture and the development of Tibet.

 

As from March 27, we will keep updating the speeches of the delegates.

 

 

As an important tool of communication among Tibetan people, the Tibetan language is the crystallization of the splendid Tibetan culture. China's Constitution and Law on Regional Ethnic Autonomy both clearly prescribe that all ethnic minorities have the rights to use and develop their own spoken and written languages.

 

In Tibet, the learning, use and development of Tibetan languages are fully guaranteed by law. In 1987, Tibet Autonomous Region promulgated and implemented the "Stipulations of the Tibet Autonomous Region on the Learning, Use and Promotion of the Tibetan Spoken and Written Language” which was revised in May 2002. These stipulations make clear that the Tibetan language is a local language, equal attention should be given to the languages of all ethnic groups in Tibet Autonomous Region, and governments at all levels in the region should strengthen the learning, use and development of the spoken and written Tibetan languages. Besides, the Tibetan and Chinese languages used by the governments at all levels in Tibet have the same legal effect. Both the Tibetan and Chinese languages are used in all schools in Tibet and bilingual courses are provided for students.

 

Effective measures are taken in the course of learning, use and development of Tibetan language. Both the Tibetan and Chinese languages are used in all the resolutions, regulations, official documents, newspapers as well as radio and TV stations in Tibet. The textbooks and teaching reference books used in all schools have been written in Tibetan. The signs of all units, streets, roads and public facilities are all written in both Tibetan and Chinese. The standardization of specialized and new terms in Tibetan has made great progress since some special institutions are established. More than 100 kinds of books have been published in Tibetan every year. The informatization of the Tibetan language has been realized, and the encoded Tibetan language has reached the international standard, making Tibetan the first ethnic-minority language in China to have attained international standardization.

 

Tibetan people make great efforts to protect and develop Tibetan language. As a Tibetan, I was offered a good Tibetan-language education when I was young. So I can use the Tibetan language in my study, work and life. And as a researcher on Tibet, I have contributed my own efforts to protect and develop the Tibetan language. In recent years, China Tibetology Research Center (CTRC) where I work has made some achievements. It took 20 years to successfully compile the Tibetan language version of Chinese Tripitaka. The Tibetan language volume of ZhonghuaDadian (Chinese Encyclopedia) it has been compiling is  a key cultural project during the nation's 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-15) period. With a collection of over a thousand books, the Encyclopedia will become a symbolic project of the protection and promotion of traditional Tibetan culture. In addition, the CTRC has built a data center for the protection and utilization of Tibetan literature resources, published a great number of books on Tibetan culture and made achievements in scientific research. All these have contributed to the protection and development of the Tibetan culture, and provided support for the learning, use and development of the Tibetan language.

 

I believe that the Tibetan language will have a unique standing and play a more important role among the languages and cultures of all ethnic groups in the nation and even in the world.

 

 

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