Sedentarisation of Tibetan nomads in China: Implementation of the Nomadic settlement project in the Tibetan Amdo area; Qinghai and Sichuan Provinces

Abstract

Sedentarisation efforts have been part of the Chinese policy on the Tibetan grassland since the 1960s. These efforts increased significantly after the introduction of the Opening of the west (Chin: 西部大开发 xibu da kaifa) development strategy. The aim of the sedentarisation programs is mainly to improve the grassland ecosystem and also the socio-economic situation of nomadic households. Nevertheless the program aims do not concentrate primarily on the nomads and how they cope with the situation and new lifestyle in the urban settlements. Are the settlement measures going to solve the situation on the grassland in the west of China, or is the hasty implementation going to bring further social problems for Tibetan nomads, that the Central Government will have to solve? This article will not be able to answer all these important questions as the resettlement process has not been completely accomplished yet. The article focuses on recently implemented projects in the sequence of sedentarisation programs, the so-called Nomadic settlement (Chin: 游牧民定居 you mumin dingju) and describes the main elements of this project according to governmental documents, interviews with responsible persons and its implementation in areas of Maqin and Zeku Counties in Qinghai Province and Hongyuan County in Sichuan Province. The article provides information on the outcome of the project, the recent situation and offers a basis for further research.