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Dynamics of Political Resistance in Tibet: Religious Repression and Controversies of Demographic Change

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 November 2013

Enze Han  and
Christopher Paik
Enze Han
Affiliation:
School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. Email: [email protected].
Christopher Paik
Affiliation:
New York University Abu Dhabi. Email: [email protected].
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Abstract

In a novel approach to studying political mobilization among ethnic Tibetans in China, this article addresses two key questions. First, considering the Chinese state's repressive policies towards Tibetan Buddhism, what role does religion play in fomenting Tibetan political resistance? Second, what implications can be drawn from the changing ethnic demography in Tibet about the conflict behaviour of Tibetans? Using various GIS-referenced data, this article specifically examines the 2008 Tibetan protest movements in China. The main results of our analysis indicate that the spread and frequency of protests in ethnic Tibetan areas are significantly associated with the number of officially registered Tibetan Buddhist sites, as well as the historical dominance of particular types of Tibetan religious sects. Furthermore, our analysis shows that the effect of Han Chinese settlement on Tibetan political activism is more controversial than previously thought.

Keywords

TibetChinaprotest movementsreligious repressiondemographic change
Type
Articles
Information
The China Quarterly , Volume 217 , March 2014 , pp. 69 - 98
Copyright
Copyright © The China Quarterly 2013 

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