China Appoints a Tibetan as the New TAR Governor

By Lobsang Tsering / January 26, 2017;

Lobsang Gyaltsen, the former Chairman congratulating Che Dhala Photo: Xinhua

Mr Che Dalha (Qi Zhalha in Chinese), 59, was appointed by the Chinese Communist Party as the new chairman of the Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR) on January 16. This post is equivalent to that of governor.

Mr Che Dalha replaced Losang Gyaltsan who is now chairman of the Standing Committee of the TAR People’s Congress. Chinese state media Xinhua announced Che Dalha’s appointment and included a statement by him,“I am faced with a tough task and huge responsibility.” He promises to “study and work hard” in the light of “great expectations” from President Xi Jinping and the central government toward “Tibet’s reform and development.”

Mr Che Dhala is an ethnic Tibetan hailing from Shagri-la in the Yunnan Province in Tibet.He has worked in various capacities in the TAR, including communist party chief of Lhasa and governor of Dechen Tibet autonomous prefecture (TAP). The diplomat.com reports that according to a source with strong family ties to the area, Che Dhala is well-regarded in Dechen for his successes in overseeing rapid economic development in the region while also remaining an advocate for the promotion of the Tibetan language and other facets of Tibetan culture. However the Tibet Post reports that on a visit to the United States last year Mr Dhala openly claimed that Tibet has always been part of China, and there is no basis for “Tibet issue.”

It could be speculated that the relative social and political calm in Dechen TAP marked Che Dhala out as a capable and politically reliable Tibetan official whose skills could be utilised in the more challenging political climate of Lhasa. However, the same source who noted Che Dhala is well-regarded in Dechen also comments on his many years of training in Beijing, and states that he is extremely unlikely to take Tibetans’ concerns into special consideration just because he himself is Tibetan.

The position of governor is not the most powerful position in Tibet, coming under the central government as well as the TAR Party secretary.