Dharamshala, 21st February: Tibetans in Dragyab County and Chamdo who have contacts in exile have reportedly been told to install spyware on their cellphones to keep an eye on them. The Chinese government has adopted a new surveillance strategy. Local sources in Tibet have confirmed the deployment of cell phone spyware that actively monitors Tibetans with links in exile, according to Tibet Watch, a Dharamshala-based Tibet Human Rights research group.
According to Phayul, Pema Gyal, a Tibet Watch researcher, told them, “China has aggressively enforced the use of software in the phones of concerned individuals. The local source in Tibet has told us how the authorities keep an eye on everything they do on their phones. The situation in these regions has become highly sensitive. From 2017 to 2021, what has now transpired is that even families are finding it difficult to contact their loved ones. Now the government suspects anybody who has any contact outside,”
She continued, “There have been instances in one of the monasteries where Chinese officials arrived to warn the monks that if they are in possession of information that could put them in jeopardy. This is just one example. The extent of surveillance has reached every part of Tibet. This is not something out of my own imagination, this is real.” The Tibetans are forced to live in fear under such a dictatorship, according to the researcher.
According to the report, “Anyone found with photos and videos deemed “politically sensitive” by police authorities and contacting Tibetans living outside Tibet were arbitrarily detained for two to three months. They have also been kept under surveillance upon release and subjected to restrictions on movement,”
Three more Tibetans were held in Drago County in January, for possessing images and recordings of the recent demolitions of Buddha sculptures at Drago monastery on their phones. According to Phayul, two men named Asang and Dota, as well as a woman named Nortso were arrested when their phones were inspected upon their return from pilgrimage.
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