Lhasa (AsiaNews) - The Chinese communist party is launching a campaign of political re-education for the governing members of the autonomous region of Tibet, in the attempt to choke off immediately any pro-independence sentiment and any openness toward the Dalai Lama.  The news has been announced by the Tibet Daily, a government newspaper, which explains: "The campaign, which will last two months, is aimed at combating separatism, protecting stability, and promoting development".

In order to reach this goal, the re-education will focus on "unifying the thinking and cohesive strength of officials and the masses, deepening the struggle against separatism, and counter-attacking the separatist plots of the Dalai clique". The members of the party will watch television programs together and participate in sessions of self-criticism and organised denunciation.

Various analysts emphasise that the decision to re-educate the communist leaders of Tibet more than one month since the beginning of protests in Lhasa means that the official political stance on the region is not unified.  The increase of armed forces in the region, the ban on tourism and on entry into the region (even from China itself) demonstrate that the party is afraid of a new organised revolt, and above all of a possible agreement between the local authorities and the Dalai Lama.

For his part, the spiritual and political head of Tibetan Buddhism has condemned the violence of these weeks, and has repeatedly expressed his support for the Olympics, but has denounced the "cultural genocide" taking place in Tibet and has declared that he "cannot make any more concessions" to Beijing.  The central government has responded by calling him "an insignificant exile".

In the meantime, the repression continues in Tibet and in the neighbouring Chinese provinces.  According to some local sources, consulted by Radio Free Asia, the police of Qinghai (in the west central part of China) have arrested 105 people in recent days.  These include both demonstrators and intellectuals, "guilty" of having expressed their support for the Tibetan cause.

The situation is the same in Sichuan, where agents are conducting surprise inspections of monasteries and private homes in which Tibetan natives live.  According to one travel agent, it is "difficult" to get into some of the Buddhist temples in the area, which are under surveillance by policemen and members of the office of religious affairs.