LHASA, March 28 (Xinhua) -- With social stability, economic prosperity, thriving cultures and religious harmony, today's Xizang Autonomous Region in southwest China demonstrates unprecedented progress in human rights.
What has taken place in the region, especially since 2012, has highlighted China's sound and effective governance in Xizang, and is also a solid rebuttal to the baseless Western narratives of "oppression."
Yet the human rights situation in the plateau region is often distortedly embedded in international human rights discourse and weaponized by anti-China forces to achieve their geopolitical agendas.
A white paper titled "Human Rights in Xizang in the New Era," published on Friday, highlighted the great development and progress of human rights in Xizang since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in November 2012.
Over the years, Xizang has experienced unprecedented development and changes, delivering more tangible benefits to local people.
Before its peaceful liberation in 1951, Xizang was one of the regions in the world with the worst human rights records. Serfs and slaves were afforded no human rights and treated as mere tools. Serf owners controlled their lives, deaths, marriages, and even traded them as private property.
After the peaceful liberation, the central government provided Xizang with substantial fiscal, material and human resource support that helped propel the region's development. The landmark democratic reform in 1959 abolished theocratic feudal serfdom -- a system of human rights oppression.
A new dawn broke in 1965 with the establishment of the Xizang Autonomous Region. The region began to exercise comprehensive regional ethnic autonomy, and many liberated serfs and slaves earned leading posts in agencies of state power at various levels of the region.
The reform and opening-up policy has not only helped elevate social productivity, but also injected strong momentum into the advancement of human rights in Xizang. The region, henceforth, embarked on a path of synchronous development with the rest of the country, with its human rights cause entering a fast track.
Since 2012, China has developed tailored governance guidelines for Xizang to accelerate modernization practices. A number of key construction projects have been implemented and special preferential policies enacted to benefit all ethnic groups in the region and support the all-round human rights development.
Fast-forward to today, people in Xizang enjoy extensive and genuine democratic rights in accordance with law under the system of regional ethnic autonomy. Of the 25 deputies of the Xizang delegation to the 14th National People's Congress, the national legislature, 17 (or 68 percent) are from the Tibetan or other ethnic minority groups.
People's economic and social rights here have been enhanced, with absolute poverty eradicated and living standards continuously improved. The average life expectancy in the region rose from 68.17 years in 2010 to 72.19 years in 2020. The medical and health service network has now achieved full coverage across the region.
Education in the region has evolved from a privilege for the elite in the dark age of cruel serfdom to a common right. With a 97.86-percent compulsory education enrollment rate, children in Xizang, including those from remote pastoral areas, have inspiring spaces to learn and grow.
Xizang attaches great importance to protecting, passing down and developing the fine traditional cultures of all ethnic groups. While the use of standard spoken and written Chinese language is generalized, the right to use the Tibetan language is guaranteed in schools as well as in publishing, media, and daily life. Notably, digital tools like Tibetan input systems are empowering the younger generation.
Smears regarding religious freedom in Xizang collapse under the weight of hard facts, as various religions now coexist harmoniously and numerous religious activities are held annually. Tibetan Buddhism traditions are celebrated and faithfully observed.
Environmental conservation is prioritized by laws, making Xizang one of the world's best-preserved regions in terms of ecology.
It is noteworthy that Xizang's great achievements have been made under the CPC's leadership and with the support of the entire nation. The central authorities have regularly held special meetings, set development plans, and implemented preferential policies to boost Xizang's economic and social progress.
The remarkable achievements are a testament to the effectiveness of the CPC's governance guidelines on Xizang. Yet there remain some die-hard naysayers who continue to smear Xizang in disregard of the human rights progress in the region. They are either profoundly ignorant or harboring ulterior political motives.
The historic human rights achievements in Xizang will not be obscured by any falsehoods. On its course to modernization along with the rest of the nation, Xizang will surely continue to secure new feats in its human rights cause. ■