Dharamshala — The Chinese government has deployed around 400 Chinese military personnel from neighboring counties to the Larung Gar Buddhist Academy, Tibet's largest center for the study of Tibetan Buddhism. Sources reveal that Chinese authorities are planning strict new rules for the monastery from 2025. These policies will limit residence at Larung Gar to a maximum of 15 years and require registration of all monks and nuns. Moreover, authorities plan to reduce the number of religious practitioners at the institution.
According to the UN, EU, and the Human Rights Desk, Tibet Advocacy Section, DIIR, Central Tibetan Administration, China has deployed large military forces at the Larung Gar Buddhist Academy, located in Serthar (Ch: Seda) county, Karze, in the traditional province of Kham, Tibet. Around 400 Chinese military personnel from Drakgo (Ch: Luhuo) and neighbouring counties in Karze (Ch: Ganzi) arrived at Larung Gar on December 20, 2024. The deployment is accompanied by helicopter surveillance, a sign of intensified control activities at the religious site.
Reliable sources from Tibet reveal that Chinese authorities are planning strict new rules for the monastery from 2025. These policies will reportedly limit residency at Larung Gar to a maximum of 15 years and require registration of all monks and nuns. Moreover, authorities plan to reduce the number of religious practitioners at the institution, with some reports suggesting a cap of 1,000 students at the provincial level. Chinese students are reportedly being asked to leave, suggesting a targeted approach to reducing the monastery’s population.
“This development follows a pattern of systematic restrictions at Larung Gar. It previously endured major crackdowns in 2001 and 2016-2017, during which thousands of residential structures were demolished, and numerous practitioners were forcibly evicted,” they said.
“Larung Gar is said to be the biggest Tibetan Buddhist institute in the world. The academy and monastery, founded in 1980, sprawls over a mountainside in Serthar county in eastern Tibet, and attracts thousands of Buddhist monks and nuns who wish to study there. The demolition of this renowned institute started on 20 July 2016 and continued till early May 2017. The population of Larung Gar has nearly halved in the past years from its original population of approximately 10,000,” they added.
“The latest measures represent an escalation in China’s broader campaign to restrict religious freedom in Tibet, where traditional Buddhist institutions have faced increasing pressure under state policies aimed at controlling religious practice and education,” they said.
