New Delhi: A new report by the Tibet Action Institute (TAI) has raised serious concerns over China’s widespread use of colonial style boarding schools in Tibet, calling it an “existential struggle” to preserve Tibetan cultural identity. The report, backed by fresh evidence, alleges that these institutions are systematically assimilating Tibetan children and severing their ties with their language, families, and traditions.
In an appeal to the international community, TAI has urged the United Nations, India, and world leaders to press China to shut down these boarding schools and support Tibetan-led education that safeguards children’s rights and cultural heritage. To mark the Dalai Lama’s 90th birthday, TAI launched the Hindi version of its report, When They Came to Take Our Children, highlighting the psychological trauma and cultural loss faced by Tibetan children forcibly separated from their families. The group is demanding an immediate international investigation into reported abuse, deaths, and systemic violations inside these schools.
The report’s Delhi release brought together several prominent voices including MP Sujeet Kumar, former Home Ministry advisor Amitabh Mathur, Core Group for Tibetan Cause convener R.K. Khrimey, researcher Dr. Gyal Lo, and Tibetan Parliamentarian Dorjee Tseten. First exposed in 2021, the issue has grown more dire. The updated report reveals that nearly one million Tibetan children, including over 100,000 preschoolers aged 4–6, are now in Chinese-run boarding schools. Many are prohibited from speaking Tibetan or practicing their religion, even during holidays—direct violations of both Chinese and international law. The report warns that Beijing’s aim is to break the generational transmission of Tibetan language, religion, and cultural values.
“By targeting the youngest Tibetans, the Chinese government is using these schools as its most powerful tool for forced assimilation,” the report states.
Drawing on rare firsthand testimonies from within Tibet and among exiles, the report documents poor living conditions, neglect, emotional trauma, and strict language policies that forbid use of Tibetan. Children’s exposure to Tibetan books, art, and culture is being systematically replaced with Mandarin and Communist Party propaganda.
TAI argues that this system amounts to cultural genocide and connects it directly to Beijing’s broader campaign to control the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama—an effort aimed at spiritual and political dominance in the region.
Dr. Gyal Lo, a Tibet expert and senior researcher at TAI, noted, “These schools are not about education—they’re about indoctrination. The Chinese government is engineering a generation that will no longer recognize or value its Tibetan roots. This isn’t just a policy; it’s a systematic erasure.”
Speaking at the event, Tibetan MP Dorjee Tseten called for urgent global intervention: “We are witnessing the forced separation of an entire generation from their families and culture. The emotional and psychological scars will last for decades. The world cannot remain silent.”
Organized in collaboration with the India-Tibet Coordination Office, the event emphasized the urgent need for global action to halt what TAI describes as one of the gravest cultural crises facing the Tibetan people today.
