Is there a climate conference going on?
In Copenhagen, big companies from Siemens to Shell are making sure you know they care. Full Article | Full Coverage
FACTBOX: Major points of contention on Tibet
(Reuters) - Following are some of the major issues over Tibet which divide China's government and many of its people from their critics in the controversy around this year's Beijing Olympics:
ECONOMY
- China says its troops liberated Tibet in 1950 from a feudal serfdom. Since then, it has provided massive subsidies to help develop the remote region, whose economy has been outpacing national growth and expanding at rates of more than 12 percent annually over the past five years.
- Critics say Tibetans have been left out of the boom, creating an ethnic wealth gap between Han Chinese and Tibetans. They say Tibetans, many of whom subsist on herding and farming, lack the skills to participate in the industrialization drive.
RELIGION
- China's ruling Communist Party is officially atheist but its constitution guarantees freedom of religion, though under the auspices of the Party. China says Buddhism has flourished in Tibet since the Cultural Revolution, when many monasteries were destroyed and monks persecuted.
- Monks complain their religious practice is constrained by "patriotic education" in the monasteries and say they are forced to denounce the Dalai Lama, the exiled spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism whom China sees as a traitor.
DEMOGRAPHICS
- Critics of China's policies in Tibet say it is being flooded with Han Chinese who could swamp its distinctive culture, particularly since the opening of a railway link to the region. The Dalai Lama has talked of possible "cultural genocide".
- China has angrily dismissed the accusation, citing great efforts to preserve Tibetan culture, It says only a small number of Han live permanently in Tibet and the presence of migrant workers is helping stimulate its economy.
GOALS
- The Dalai Lama says he is not seeking independence, but meaningful autonomy for the region. China counters that he is insincere and says he is bent on separating Tibet from the rest of the country.
(Compiled by Lindsay Beck; Editing by Nick Macfie and Jerry Norton)
