The Canadian Parliamentary Committee on International Human Rights (SDIR), a subcommittee of the Canadian Parliament’s Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development, tabled a report on The Human Rights Situation of Tibetans and The Chinese Residential Boarding School and Preschool System on June 19, 2023.
The 48-page report contains 18 recommendations and received the full support of Canadian Parliamentarians, across all political parties, for adoption of a broader and more comprehensive Tibet policy by the Government of Canada. Prior to preparing the report, the House of Commons Subcommittee on International Human Rights of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development organized two meetings on the residential school system in Tibet and Subcommittee members heard from eight witnesses including Tibetan rights activists, academics and human rights experts.
The 18 recommendations include:
Recommendation 1
That the Government of Canada request that the People’s Republic of China provide information as to the whereabouts of the 11th Panchen Lama, in order to confirm his well being, and furthermore, that the Government of Canada publicly recognize the 11th Panchen Lama as a victim of enforced disappearance and related human rights violations.
Recommendation 4
That the Government of Canada utilize the Special Economic Measures Act to sanction the Chinese officials involved in the deployment of second-generation ethnic policies that are being used to repress Tibetans and other minority groups in the People’s Republic of China.
Recommendation 8
That the Government of Canada appoint a Special Coordinator for Tibet to act as a frontline contact for all individuals and groups facing state-backed harassment, intimidation, and interference in Canada.
Recommendation 9
That the Government of Canada establish a list of entities involved in human rights abuses in Tibet, such as ones supplying equipment and technology for the residential boarding school and preschool system, and companies involved in the mass illegal collection of Tibetan DNA samples in Tibet, and prohibit investment in and dealings with those entities, and consider sanctions on them.
Recommendation 10
That the Government of Canada rely on diplomatic avenues internationally, including through its Ambassador to the United Nations, to draw attention to violations of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child by the Government of the People’s Republic of China which are occurring in the context of the residential school system in Tibet.
Recommendation 16
That the Government of Canada utilize the Special Economic Measures Act to sanction government officials who are responsible for the implementation of the residential boarding school and preschool system in Tibet, including the provincial party secretary in Tibet, and the architects responsible for designing and implementing the residential boarding school system.
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