China extends restrictions on Tibetan language use in apps, streaming services: Report

Dharamshala (Himachal Pradesh) [India], March 28 : The Chinese government has extended its restrictions on the Tibetan language on various online platforms and video streaming services, said a media report.
In its report, Phayul said that due to these restrictions sources fear another push for further assimilation of Bejing's so-called ethnic minorities into the dominant Han Chinese culture.
According to Radio Free Asia's (RFA) sources, the Chinese government's directives, "China-based language learning app Talkmate and video streaming service Bilibili have now removed the Tibetan and Uyghur languages from their sites," Phayul reported.
It further reported that the Chinese government order on December 20 last year, the report said, announced that foreign organizations and individuals, beginning from March 1, can no longer spread "religious content" online in China or Tibet until the groups obtain a special license to do so.
The regulation 'Measures on the Administration of Internet Religious Information Service' went into effect on March 1.
According to the source the restrictions are put in a wide range of social media platforms in Tibetan areas.
"Specifically, those platforms where users go live to perform and communicate with their audiences have seen more restrictions put in place. Tibetans are forbidden to speak in Tibetan while communicating, and if any Tibetan artist tries to represent Tibetan culture and tradition on their social media platform, their accounts are disconnected," the source told RFA, adding that such live performances are interrupted immediately by the government, according to Phayul.
Meanwhile, anyone found guilty of flouting these rules could face severe punishment.
Chinese troops occupied Tibet in 1950 and later annexed it. The 1959 Tibetan uprising saw violent clashes between Tibetan residents and Chinese forces.