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The Construction of Consent for High-altitude Resettlement in Tibet

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 March 2023

Yonten Nyima  and
Emily T. Yeh Open the ORCID record for Emily T. Yeh [Opens in a new window]
Yonten Nyima*
Affiliation:
Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, New York University; Independent Researcher, New York City, United States,
Emily T. Yeh
Affiliation:
Department of Geography, University of Colorado Boulder, United States
*
Corresponding author: Yonten Nyima, email: yundanni@colorado.edu
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Abstract

In 2018, the Tibet Autonomous Region began resettling pastoralists from high-altitude areas to newly built settlements in distant, lower-altitude farming locations under the “extremely high-altitude ecological resettlement” programme, with a stated dual purpose of environmental protection and improving pastoralist well-being. The programme is said to be based on a principle of “government guidance and voluntary participation.” However, despite its stated “voluntary” nature, the government reports a 100 per cent rate of agreement to participate. After examining the ecological rationales for resettlement and pastoralists’ reluctance to move owing to livelihood concerns and attachment to homeland, the article examines how consent is achieved. Based on official documents and reports as well as semi-structured interviews with officials and pastoralists in Nagchu Municipality, the core target area for the programme, the article identifies a three-step “thought-work” oriented process – beginning with an initial survey, followed by group incentives and warnings and then individual incentives and warnings – which is deployed until pastoralists sign a resettlement agreement. The process illustrates the dialectical relationship between coercion and consent.

摘要

摘要

自 2018 年起，以保护生态和改善民生为由，以“政府主导、群众自愿”为原则，西藏自治区实施 “极高海拔生态搬迁”项目，将生活在高海拔牧区的牧民远迁至在海拔相对较低的农区新建的安置点。政府宣称，牧民搬迁出于自愿，搬迁同意率达到百分之百。基于对项目核心区那曲市的牧民和官员的访谈，结合官方报道，在讨论完搬迁的生态保护理由以及事实上牧民因搬迁后的生计之忧和故土难离之情并不愿搬迁之后，本文探讨了政府是如何使牧民同意搬迁的。文章指出了一个以“思想工作”为核心的分三步的建构同意的过程。首先是对牧民进行搬迁意愿调查，紧接着是对牧民进行从集体 (第二步) 到个人 (第三步) 的思想引导，恩威并施，直到所有牧民签署搬迁同意书。这一过程显示了被强制与同意之间的辩证关系。

Keywords

Tibetpastoralismresettlementconsentthought work西藏畜牧业搬迁同意思想工作
Type
Research Article
Information
The China Quarterly , Volume 254 , June 2023 , pp. 429 - 447
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of SOAS University of London

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