Western human rights defenders accuse Chinese officials of taking over Tibetan Buddhist monastery

Beijing. January 26. Silkroadnews - Western human rights defenders accuse Chinese officials of taking over Tibetan Buddhist monastery, the TimesLIVE reports.
“Chinese officials are engaging in a “takeover” of one of the world’s largest Tibetan Buddhist monasteries with a plan to put Communist Party officials in charge of its administration, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said,” the agency wrote.
The area of Larung Gar, a major Buddhist educational and religious center in the mountains of the southwestern Sichuan province, has already been reduced, and now the government splits the center into two sections: an academy and a monastery, separated by a wall.
At the monastery there will be quotas introduced for employees recruiting, along with introduction of registering monks under real names and appointing 97 communists, who are atheists, to top positions in finance, security and admission roles. To accommodate party members on the territory of the monastery the officials have constructed a large building.
China has denied information about the demolition of Larung Gar, saying that the work there is aimed at improving fire safety and “reconstruction” of old buildings.
Chinese law guarantees freedom of religion, but, according to HRW, the authorities closely monitor religious believers and institutions, especially in such areas as Tibet.