http://news.yam.com/afp/international/200804/20080417049023.html
動亂不斷 中國取消五月一日重開西藏計劃
法新社╱王思捷 2008-04-17 12:35
（法新社北京十七日電）位於喜馬拉雅山山麓的西藏緊張情勢依然一觸即發之際，一名西藏觀光官員今天表示，中國政府已放棄五月一日重新開放觀光客進入西藏的計劃。
被問及西藏向外國和本國觀光客重新開放的計劃是否已被推遲時，一名西藏觀光局官員在電話中向「法新社」表示：「是的，因為時機還不夠成熟。」
這名官員自稱在觀光局拉薩辦公室工作，但拒絕透露姓名，他說新的開放日期尚未確定。
他只說：「不，日期尚未被決定」，並拒絕透露更多細節。
以美國為基地的「國際支援西藏運動」組織上週表示，他們獲得「可靠情報」指出，由於西藏動亂仍在持續，開放計劃已被取消，而且可能在八月八日至二十四日進行的北京奧運結束前，都不會再重新對外開放。
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080417/wl_afp/chinaunresttibetrightstourism_080417063243
China cancels May 1 plan to reopen Tibet: official
by Dan Martin
6 minutes ago
BEIJING (AFP) - China has abandoned plans to reopen riot-hit Tibet to visitors on May 1, a tourism official in the Himalayan region said Thursday, amid reports of simmering tension there.
Asked whether the reopening for foreign and domestic tourists had been postponed, a Tibet Tourism Bureau official told AFP by phone: "Yes, because conditions are not ripe for it."
The man, who refused to give his name but said he was director of the bureau's main office in the Tibetan capital of Lhasa, said a new date had not been set.
"No. It's not decided yet," he said, refusing to give further details.
Tour organisers had been informed of the postponement, a tour operator in the southwestern Chinese city of Chengdu who regularly arranges trips to Tibet told AFP.
"Yes, they have told us. But they haven't indicated what the new date would be," said the woman, who organises such trips from a guesthouse in the city.
She asked that AFP not use her name to avoid trouble with authorities.
The US-based International Campaign for Tibet first reported the postponement last week, saying the reversal was due to lingering unrest and that Tibet might not be reopened until after the August 8-24 Beijing Olympics.
Chinese authorities began clearing Tibet of foreign tourists after riots erupted in the region's capital, Lhasa, on March 14 amid protests by Tibetans against China's 57-year rule of the remote region.
Foreign reporters were also banned as China sent in a massive security force to quell the unrest, which spread to other areas of western China with Tibetan populations.
Chinese authorities announced on April 3 that the region would be reopened to foreign and domestic tourists on May 1, a national holiday in China.
The official Xinhua news agency said independent travellers, as well as those on group tours, would be allowed back in.
The report cited Tibet's tourism bureau while Lhasa's tourism authorities also confirmed the May 1 plan to AFP.
However, the government appeared to begin backtracking last week amid continuing reports of tension in the region.
On two occasions in recent weeks, Tibetan monks at Buddhist monasteries in Lhasa and the northwestern Chinese province of Gansu have held protests in front of foreign journalists brought to the region by China on tours aimed at showing calm had returned.
The monks denounced China's rule and called for the return of the Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, who was forced into exile in India in 1959.
Pro-Tibet groups overseas have said China has added to anger in the region by responding with a campaign of "patriotic re-education" in monasteries, which the groups say typically involves forcing monks to denounce the Dalai Lama.
Exiled Tibetan leaders say more than 150 people have died in the Chinese crackdown on the demonstrations. China insists it has acted with restraint and killed no one, while blaming Tibetan "rioters" for the deaths of 20 people.
Alongside the Great Wall and the famed Terracotta Warriors in Xian, Tibet has become one of the most popular destinations for foreign travellers in China.
Its spectacular landscape, Buddhist culture and access to Mount Everest base camp are among Tibet's top drawcards.
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