Xi Jinping makes rare visit to Tibet

On 20 August 2025, Xi Jinping made a rare visit to Lhasa, his first since 2021, ahead of the Tibet Autonomous Region’s 60th anniversary, declaring: “Tibet must fully implement the Party’s strategy for governing Tibet in the new era.”

Senior figures gathered in Lhasa for a grand celebration marking the 60th anniversary of the establishment of the so-called Tibet Autonomous Region, a political structure created to enforce Beijing’s grip over Tibet. The event was meticulously staged: Chinese cadres dressed in traditional Tibetan chupa garments, while Tibetans were ordered to present ceremonial scarves and wave red flags as a show of loyalty. According to local sources, plain-clothes agents monitored the crowd closely.

The visit comes as the CCP is accelerating efforts to erase Tibetan identity. On 5 August, Karma Tsering, Chairman of the Tibet Autonomous Region, confirmed that from 2026, Tibetan language will no longer be a compulsory subject in the national college entrance examination in Tibet. Xi further emphasized the sinicization of religion: “We must systematically promote the Sinicisation of religion, strengthen legal governance of religious affairs, and guide Tibetan Buddhism to adapt to socialist society.”

After hearing reports from the regional Party Committee and government, Xi delivered a major speech. According to the People’s Daily, he declared: “Tibet must fully implement the Party’s strategy for governing Tibet in the new era, adhere to the principle of progress while ensuring stability, apply the new development philosophy on all fronts, promote high-quality development, and focus on the four key issues: stability, development, ecology, and border security. We must build a united, prosperous, civilised, harmonious, and beautiful modern socialist new Tibet.”

Xi stressed the CCP’s core priority: maintaining absolute political control. “To govern, stabilize, and develop Tibet, the first task is to maintain Tibet’s political stability, social stability, ethnic unity, and religious harmony. We must deepen the fight against separatism and make significant achievements in economic and social development.” He also called for “forging a strong sense of community for the Chinese nation” and promoting the construction of a so-called “Chinese community”, language that signals further assimilation.

Xi also linked Tibet’s development to China’s strategic interests, calling for the expansion of major projects such as the Medog Hydropower Station and the Sichuan-Tibet Railway. These projects aim to strengthen Beijing’s military and economic presence along the Himalayas while exploiting Tibet’s natural resources under the guise of “ecological civilisation.”

The message is clear: China fears Tibet’s distinct identity and spirit of resistance. The CCP’s obsession with control drives its relentless campaign to assimilate Tibetans, undermine their language, dismantle their culture, and exert total dominance over the plateau, all while claiming “stability.”

On 21 August, Wang Huning reinforced this agenda during the anniversary celebrations in Lhasa: “We must unswervingly ensure national security and long-term stability. Consolidate harmony in Tibet, strengthen rule of law, build an iron wall to maintain stability, deepen the fight against separatism, and ensure border security. Tibet has been an inseparable part of China since ancient times. Tibet affairs are China’s internal affairs, and there will be no tolerance for any external interference. All attempts to split the motherland and undermine Tibet’s stability are doomed to fail.”

According to Xinhua, nearly 20,000 people, including cadres and selected representatives of different ethnic groups, were assembled in front of the Potala Palace, waving red flags and singing “red songs” to glorify the Party.

The image was clear: a forced spectacle of loyalty, masking a reality of fear and control.