Ragya School Gets Partial Reprieve: China Permits Only Vocational Training to Resume
By Tenzin Chokyi
DHARAMSALA, 17 April: Almost a year after its forced closure, Ragya Jigme Gyaltsen Nationalities Vocational High School, a prominent Tibetan educational institute in Golok, occupied Tibet, has been granted permission to reopen by the Chinese government to run only its vocational courses.
In a video that has surfaced online from the region, Ragya Jigme Gyaltsen, the founder and principal of the institute, announces that, although they are no longer allowed to promote as they once did, the school has received full approval from the Chinese government to resume its vocational training programs.
“Although the reopening is not immediate, once we resume, I hope everyone will acquire valuable skills in this field of technology to catch up with this era of modernity,” the principal says in the video.
Netizens inside and outside of occupied Tibet have expressed joy at this momentous news. Yet, many have also voiced concerns that the school’s curriculum has been redirected strictly towards vocational education.
Before its forced closure in July last year, the school provided seven specialised classes including Tibetan language, English Language, computer science, engineering, medicine, videography and physical education.
The school, also known as Gang Jong Sherig Norbu Lobling, consisted of 58 teachers and staff members, among whom were renowned Tibetan scholars such as the late Professor Vajra Tsultrum Gyatso, Prof Sherap Tendhar and Prof Dong Yonten Gyatso.
Since its founding in 1994, at least 2,300 students have graduated from the institution, with at least over 800 university students, 50 research students, 90 doctors, 110 government employees, 250 university teachers, 13 headmasters, 110 monastic workers, and 260 specialised professionals.
