Diplomatic Victory: India’s NSC Ditches “Xizang” from its Tibet Quake Report
By Tenzin Chokyi
DHARAMSALA 28 Jan: The National Seismological Centre(NSC) in New Delhi, India’s primary agency for monitoring and studying earthquakes has reverted to using “Tibet” instead of “Xizang” on their website after Voluntary Tibet Advocacy Groups (V-TAGs) members Tenzin Damdul and Tenzin Lhatso based in New Delhi met with the National Centre For Seismology(NCS) director Dr O.P Mishra last week to address the use of the Chinese colonial name “Xizang” in the recent reports on the devastating Tingri Earthquake in occupied Tibet.
After NSC’s reversion, Damdul told Tibet Express over the phone that NSC had assured them of changes during their 21st January meeting. Director Mishra clarified that “Tibet” is the official nomenclature used in India’s geopolitical framework when they inquired about any potential shift in India’s policy toward Tibet.
“There are still several other countries using the Chinese colonial name “Xizang” instead of Tibet in their official seismological sites directly run by the government,” Damdul said. He urged countries like the UK, Switzerland, the US and the Netherlands to stop using the term “Xizang” on their government-operated seismology websites following the commendable change by the NSC.
The UK has used “Tibet(Xizang)” and “Tibet, SW China,” and the Netherlands have used “Tibet, China” in its report while using “Xizang, China” in the map. Switzerland has outright used “Xizang.”
Damdul, who is also a researcher at the Foundation for the Non-Violent Alternatives based in Delhi, concluded by suggesting that the Tibetans should lobby these government-run institutions to right the wrong by following the leadership exemplified by India.
India’s primary agency for monitoring and studying earthquakes, in its latest earthquake report on 27 Jan, has used Tibet instead of “Xizang”. However, NSC’s previous reports continue to refer to Tibet as “Xizang”.
The Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI), the Netherlands’ national seismology centre, has used “Tibet, China” in its report and “Xizang, China” on the map while reporting on the Tibet quake.
