Tibetan Rural Communities’ Rights and Livelihoods Threatened By China’s Climate Action Plan 

Giulia Benzi

Tibet and Human Rights Researcher,

Global Human Rights Defence. 

According to Tibetan sources, the Chinese government’s climate action plan is undermining Tibetan rural communities’ rights over their lands. Basic rights and livelihoods of countrymen in Tibet are therefore jeopardised under the Grassland Preservation Policy. For instance, Tibet Press reported events in which Tibetans were forcefully obliged to renounce their lands. Not only, but in some instances they were also forced to stop using grazing fields. Land permits and farm lands are increasingly passing under the ownership of the Chinese government, disrupting Tibetan people’ livelihoods. The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) also denounced China for its attempts to violate Tibetans’ rights in the name of mitigating the impact of climate change and carbon emissions. However, this is happening at the expense of rural communities, who now have to inevitably change their life-style and ways of production. 

Sources and Further Reading: 

ANI News (2021). Tibetans say China's climate action plan hurts livelihoods, rights of countrymen. ANI News. https://www.aninews.in/news/world/asia/tibetans-say-chinas-climate-action-plan-hurts-livelihoods-rights-of-countrymen20211102124055/.