China's Tibetan Delegation Visits South Africa

A Chinese delegation of Tibetologists have held a discussion with South African scholars and officials on the social development in Tibet.

During their meeting, the delegates gave presentations about Tibet's history, its democratic reform since 1959, and the great achievements of the Tibetan people during the past 50 years. Our reporter Zhangcheng has more.

Reporter:

The delegation lead by Shes-rab-nyi-ma, Vice President of China's Central University for Nationalities, arrived in Johannesburg, the largest city in South Africa, on Wednesday.

They met with scholars from the renowned Wits University and officials from the South African Human Rights Commission.Shes-rab-nyi-ma said young people in Tibet, like their counterparts in South Africa, are interested in their own culture and language.

He said the Chinese government has made great efforts to protect Tibetan culture and help young Tibetans learn their language.

"Tibetan youths are provided free choices to accept Chinese-language instruction or Tibetan-language instruction. There are classes in Tibetan from primary schools through college. We have found that students majoring in the Tibetan language can easily find an ideal job in the competitive job market."

As a native Tibetan, Shes-rab-nyi-ma said he was a witness to, participant in and beneficiary of the great changes in Tibet during the past 50 years, especially after the establishment of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway in 2006.

"The Qinghai-Tibet Railway bridged the gap between Tibet and other regions in China. It makes people-to-people exchanges more frequent (and) trade more prosperous. Meanwhile, this railway provides job opportunities for thousands of Tibetans. Moreover, it boosts tourism in Tibet."

Shes-rab-nyi-ma also said Tibet is a sacred land for hundreds of thousands of Chinese Buddhists. The Chinese government respects their religion, and the railway aims to provide conveniences for religious pilgrims.

Garth Sheltoon is a professor at Wits University. He says the delegation has given the South Africans a new perspective on Tibet and a chance to know it in a more real and objective way.

"Their introductions are helpful because usually all the information we receive on Tibet is mostly from the western media. And the western media tend to repeat the stories. So we don't really know much about Tibet in South Africa. The visiting professors brought a lot of very new interesting information for us, a lot of things we don't know about, so this is a valuable meeting. I think we should have more meetings like this."

This is the first time that a delegation of Tibetologists has visited South Africa. Delegation members will also meet officials from South Africa's ruling African National Congress and Communist Party members.

Zhangcheng, CRI News.