Protests in China are dealt with very strictly.
Beijing: Security personnel have arrested more than 100 people, including Buddhist monks, to crush a protest against the construction of a large dam in China’s south-eastern Sichuan province. According to a media report, due to the construction of this dam, 6 Buddhist monasteries will be submerged and people of 2 villages will have to move from there, that is why it is being opposed. In a rare case of rebellion, residents of Wangbuding Township of Dege County in Garze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture have taken to the streets since February 14 to protest against the 2240 MW Gangtuo Hydropower Project on the Drichu River (Jinsha in Chinese).
Protests started on 14 February
Radio Free Asia reported on Thursday that the dam is located on the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, one of China’s most important waterways. The protests began on 14 February, when at least 300 Tibetans gathered outside the Dege County Town Hall to protest the dam construction, in defiance of strict controls on public gatherings and widespread surveillance by authorities in the Sichuan and Tibet regions. The people were reportedly arrested in Sichuan’s Kardje Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, an area with a large population of Tibetans.
Some people had to be admitted to hospital
The report said that some of the arrested protesters were so brutally tortured by the security personnel that they had to be admitted to the hospital. Police took other steps including using water cannons to control the protesters. Videos of the protests showed monks bowing before authorities. In the video, the monks are seen requesting the authorities not to resort to demolition. Let us tell you that protests in China are crushed very mercilessly.
2 thousand people live in both the villages
State-run newspaper Global Times had earlier reported that the US$4.6 billion Yebatan hydropower project would be the largest hydropower project in the upper reaches of the Jinsha River. Vontu and Yena monasteries located close to the proposed project site, Yena, Vontu and Khardhao monasteries in Deeg county and Upper Vontu and Shipa villages and Rebten, Gonsar and Tashi monasteries in Chamdo town are likely to be affected. About 2 thousand people live in these two villages and they will be forced to relocate due to the dam project.
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