New York, May 5 (IANS) Human Rights Watch (HRW), a US-based advocacy group, has accused Beijing of imposing Chinese-medium education and ideological indoctrination on kindergarten children as part of its efforts to forcibly assimilate Tibetans.

In a 72-page report titled ‘Start with the Youngest Children: China Uses Preschools to ‘Integrate’ Tibetans’, the rights body documented that a 2021 Ministry of Education directive — the Children’s Speech Harmonisation plan — mandates the use of standard Mandarin Chinese for all preschool instruction in ethnic minority areas.

Although the kindergartens in theory can still offer supplementary sessions for minority children in their own language, it said, minorities no longer have the legal authority to organise them independently.

Expressing grave concern over Chinese policies in Tibet, the HRW said that by severely restricting Tibetan-language education in early childhood — a critical stage for language acquisition and identity formation — the Chinese government is accelerating the erosion of Tibetan language and culture.

“The Chinese government, by targeting kindergarteners, is accelerating its campaign to deprive Tibetan children of their mother tongue and their culture and identity. This policy is not about education quality but about forcibly assimilating Tibetans at an early age into a Han-centric national identity,” said Maya Wang, Deputy Asia Director at HRW.

According to HRW, China’s language policy is combined with intensified political and cultural indoctrination, with preschool curricula in Tibetan areas increasingly emphasising “patriotic education”, loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party, and identification as members of the “Chinese nation”.

“Children are taught to celebrate Han Chinese festivals, recite Chinese classics, sing patriotic songs, and participate in activities glorifying the military and revolutionary history. Tibetan Buddhism and Tibetan cultural practices—core elements of cultural and ethnic identities are absent from the curriculum,” it added.

The rights body further stated that China’s policies contravene its obligations under international human rights law, including the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which guarantees children belonging to minorities the right to use their own language and requires states to ensure education respects children’s cultural identity.

Stressing that the Chinese government should reverse policies mandating Chinese-medium education in preschools, restore genuine bilingual education options, and end political indoctrination in early childhood settings, the HRW called on foreign governments and the UN to press Beijing to comply with its international obligations and to allow independent access to Tibetan areas and schools.

“Language loss on the scale taking place in Tibet is not accidental – it is Chinese government policy. Unless China’s practices change, an entire generation of Tibetan children will grow up cut off from their own language, culture, and heritage,” said Wang.

–IANS

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