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Radio Free Asia(RFA) has reported that the Tibetan and Chinese languages will now be given equal status in Rebgong (in Chinese, Tongren) county in Qinghai’s Malho (Huangnan) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. This government action follows a storm of protest which erupted online earlier this month when the Shang Yon hotel in Rebgong banned Tibetan workers from speaking their native tongue while at work, threatening them with a 500 yuan ($76 or £53 approx) fine and possible job losses for noncompliance, according to social media accounts.

RFA have obtained a copy of a directive sent by the Chinese authorities in Rebgong county to government offices, schools, and state-owned businesses on January 11, instructing them to use both Tibetan and Chinese on official seals, signboards, letterhead, and other forms of communication.The Tibetan language will be given prominence in some cases, for example when used on a signboard or official letter. The directive also instructs people to print Tibetan and Chinese characters in the same size.However, it was not clear whether this new directive applies to private businesses or shops.

The Shang Yon hotel, which was closed by the authorities following the protest, has apologised publicly, saying that its actions had breached cultural privileges guaranteed by China’s policy on minority nationality groups. At the time, sources on the popular social media platform WeChat reported that Tibetans were complaining at this obstruction of their rights, saying the hotel had breached the Chinese constitution.The local Han Chinese community backed the Tibetans, giving no support to the hotel’s ban on Tibetan.

Since the Chinese invasion of Tibet, Tibetans have been complaining about suppression of their religious, linguistic and cultural traditions, and language rights have become a focal point of campaigns. Tibetans regularly take to the streets in their thousands to demand improved rights, including the right to use Tibetan instead of Mandarin Chinese as their language of instruction in the schools. In recent years campaigning groups have promoted the study and speaking of Tibetan inside Tibet and in the exile Tibetan community.