The move is seen as ‘completely politically-driven, to legitimize the occupation and rule of Tibet,’ say experts. 
Dharamsala, Jan. 27 (DPnet).– In early October 2023, a message was widely circulated on Chinese social media, suggesting that the name of Tibet in English would be changed to "Xizang." Earlier this year, China officially replaced the use of the term “Tibet” with “Xizang” as the romanized Chinese name on official diplomatic documents, as announced in a recent speech by the Foreign Minister Wang Yi. China wants to erase everything that makes Tibet Tibetan — even down to the name.
The Chinese government is gradually dropping the name "Tibet" in official English-language references in favor of the region's Mandarin Chinese name —"Xizang"— with experts saying the move is in line with Beijing policies aimed at erasing Tibetan culture.
Dawa Tsering, director of the Tibet Policy Institute, called on the international community not to compromise with the CCP’s efforts to reshape history and to stick to the established term “Tibet.”
“This is also a litmus test to see whether the international community will succumb to the CCP’s tyranny. If you give in, you will call ‘Xizang’ like the Chinese parrot; if you don’t give in, just continue to use ‘Tibet’ because this is a true name. The most important thing is not what China does. It’s about whether the international community will buy it,” he added.
Words have power, and China’s goal is to control the discourse and make it seem like their occupation of Tibet is legitimate, even though this is a flagrant violation of human rights.
We can’t let this happen.