Reporting from Dharamsala, July 26.– China has put into force a major religious affairs decree that will lead to strengthening Communist Party control over Tibetan Buddhism and further the objective of the religion’s “Sinification.”
Chinese state media announced that State Administration for Religious Affairs (SARA, known externally as the National Religious Affairs Administration) Order No. 19 “Administrative Measures for Religious Activity Venues” has come into force on Sept. 1, 2023. Simultaneously, Order No. 2 of the 2005 “Measures for Approval and Registration of the Establishment of Places of Religious Activities” has been repealed.
This latest decree solidifies Chinese President Xi Jinping’s drive to “Sinify” all religions, a policy first initiated during a Central United Front Work conference in mid-2015, then reaffirmed during the National Religious Work Conference in April 2016 and finally publicly declared at the 19th Party Congress in 2017.
The order not only places all religions as subservient to the Chinese Communist Party but also mandates that they implement Xi Jinping thought. Article 3 says, “Places of religious activity shall uphold the leadership of the CCP and the socialist system, thoroughly implement Xi Jinping’s ideology of socialism with Chinese characteristics for the new era, abide by the Constitution, laws, rules and regulations and relevant provisions on the management of religious affairs, practice core socialist values, adhere to the direction of Sinicization of China’s religions, adhere to the principle of independence, autonomy and self-sufficiency, and safeguard the unity of the country, national unity, religious harmony and social stability.”
[ Full text ] https://savetibet.org/new-religious-affairs-order-requires-adherence-to-ccp/