As the 50th Anniversary of the Tibetan Uprising approaches, Chinese police have begun a "strike hard" campaign in Lhasa, Tibet's capital. China has detained 81 people suspected of so-called criminal activity, and another two were held for having "reactionary music" on their phone, according to various news sources.
Phayul, a Tibetan publication, reports on China's "strike hard" campaign:
"With unprecedented levels of security already in place throughout Tibet, this latest campaign appears to be intended to intimidate Tibetans still further in the build-up to the Tibetan new year in late February, the 50th anniversary period of the March '59 uprising and the Dalai Lama's flight to India, when the authorities fear further unrest," the US based International Campaign for Tibet said in a statement.
The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy said in a statement last week that the campaign's objective is to detain those Tibetans suspected to be involved in the 2008 spring protests, and target former political prisoners.
The Washington Post explains:
"Strike hard" campaigns have historically been launched in China to fight crime and corruption. But in this case, the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy said in a statement, "the motive is to intimidate and eliminate those supporting Tibetan independence and human rights activists in Tibet."
The Lhasa municipal government is now requiring outsiders to apply for a temporary residence permit. Radio Free Asia describes first-hand accounts of sudden police visits at guest-houses and throughout the region:
An employee of a Tibetan-run guesthouse in Lhasa identified as Dajie said she had heard about the "Strike Hard" campaign.
"Yes, that's right," she said. "We don't know when the police will come, but they will come all of a sudden."
"The consequences [of not ensuring that all guests have identification] are very serious. They would close down the guesthouse."
Two are being held for having "reactionary music" on their cell phones. The Times Online explains:
On the first day, the police detained two people "who had reactionary opinions and reactionary songs on their cell phones", the newspaper said. It did not specify what constituted a "reactionary" opinion, but the word is generally used to denote an idea that fails to conform with state-approved communist ideology. In this case it is possible that the pair had voiced support for the exiled Dalai Lama and had songs that to the Buddhist monk.
Pictures of the Dalai Lama are banned, officials often vilify him in speeches, state media routinely issue attacks against the "Dalai Lama clique" and campaigns are carried out frequently in Tibet requiring people to denounce him.