Chinese authorities are implementing a new wave of demolitions at one of the world’s largest Buddhist institutes, Larung Gar in eastern Tibet

Once home to a 99-foot Buddha statue in Sengdeng Village, the sacred site has been converted since 2023 into a racecourse.

Zhang Yi, a former student leader at Tiananmen Square who was later imprisoned and tortured, is being held at the Lhasa Detention Centre.

The developments are part of a broader context of indoctrination of children in schools and intensified militarisation as part of China’s ‘Sinicisation’ policy.