Beijing (AsiaNews/Agencies) - China has stopped issuing travel permits for foreign tourists to Tibet and has ordered close scrutiny of tourists already there as security is stepped up in sensitive areas in the run-up to the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic on October 1. The arrangements will be in force until October 8.
The move risks to cripple again tourism in Tibet and in China. According to data collected in Lhasa, tourism in the region is already down 20 to 30%.
Tourists who obtained the visa before the 20th of September will be able to visit the region, but travel agencies will be strictly required to provide every tour group of foreigners with a registered vehicle and an official tour guide.
China has tightened security in recent weeks ahead of the Oct. 1 holiday that will see a military parade through the heart of Beijing, a speech by President Hu Jintao and a huge fireworks display. The security measures this year are even stronger than those implemented before and during the Olympic Games in 2008.
Tibet has been periodically off-limits since riots in Lhasa and other cities in March 2008, which caused hundreds of dead and thousands of arrests. Chinese officials say that only 22 people died.