Recently, disregarding China’s solemn position, the Canadian side organized the side event “Safeguarding Language and Cultural Heritage in Tibet” during the 55th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva. Canada and the US hosted a seminar “Assessing the PRC’s Assimilation Policies in Tibet” at the University of Ottawa. In those activities, Canada and the US  blatantly hyped up Xizang-related issues, disseminated lies about Xizang, and smeared and launched attacks against China. China expresses its strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition to these actions.

The relevant institutions and many of the individuals organizing and attending the events are known for their anti-China stance. The so-called “Tibetan government-in-exile” is a thoroughly separatist political group, and not recognized by any country in the world. Despite acknowledging Xizang being a part of Chinese territory, Canada and the US have clandestinely been keen to provide platforms for “Xizang independence” organizations, repeating what have been proven again and again to be lies and rumors. Their real intention is to use Xizang-related issues to slander China and support the“Xizang independence”forces.

A common narrative among these individuals is the accusation that the Chinese government is "forcibly assimilating" children in Xizang through so-called boarding schools. But What is the truth? Xizang is a region of high altitude and dispersed population. Children from herding families face significant challenges in accessing education due to the long distances to schools, and if the educational settings are scattered, the quality of teaching is difficult to be ensured.

In order to ensure all children’s equal right to education and also meet their parents’ request that their children study in a safe and comfortable environment, local governments have established those boarding schools. It is entirely up to the students and their parents to decide whether to attend boarding or not. Tibetan language and traditional culture are part of the curriculum. Students can wear traditional costumes in the school and have their parents visit anytime. The boarding schools in Xizang vividly illustrate the protection of Xizang human rights and cultural traditions. The so-called “forced assimilation” is nothing but a fabrication. There are mandatory policies and tests in language, culture, and history for naturalized citizens in Canada and the US. As Chinese citizens, acquiring skills and knowledge in the national standard language, culture, and history is a right and duty for people in Xizang. How can this be termed by those people as "forced assimilation" and the destruction of Xizang’s language and cultural heritage? What can it be if it is not a glaring example of double standards?

Canada and the US claim they wish for China not to repeat the mistakes they made on indigenous issues and to share their good practices. However, the genocide against indigenous peoples by Canada and the US is an internationally acknowledged fact, and their policy of addressing these issues were mainly paying lip service. They have no successful cases to speak of, only lessons to learn. Since the peaceful liberation of Xizang, the Central Government of China has abolished feudal serfdom, leading to significant social and economic progress and a revolutionary improvement in people's lives. The issues concerning the indigenous peoples in Canada and the US bear no resemblance to those related to Xizang. They should learn from China's success, rather than using their own guilt as an excuse and a pretext to falsely accuse other countries and relentlessly smear China.

While Canada and the US claim to oppose "foreign interference," they indulge in hyping up issues related to Xizang to interfere in China's internal affairs. The truth is that they never really cared about the well-being of the people in Xizang. Their real intention is to use Xizang-related issues as a tool to recklessly meddle in China's internal affairs in pursuit of geopolitical interests. I must emphasize that the tremendous development achievements made in Xizang since its peaceful liberation can never be overshadowed by the slanderous smears of the US and some Western countries, and their scheme to contain China using Xizang-related issues is doomed to failure!