China has permanently closed the Hungkar Dorje Vocational High School, a famous Tibetan educational institution in Qinghai Province that was founded by the late Buddhist leader Tulku Hungkar Dorje. According to the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT), the closure ends nearly two decades of efforts to preserve the Tibetan language, culture and traditional knowledge through education.The school, also known as the Snowland Ancient and Modern Education Center, was established in 2008 in the Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Golog. He taught students the Tibetan language and offered lessons rooted in Tibetan culture and traditions. The ICT said this approach was in conflict with Beijing’s education policy, which increasingly requires Mandarin to be the main language of instruction, including in Tibetan regions.The founder of the school, Tulku Hungkar Dorje, who headed the Lungngon Monastery, had faced sustained pressure from the Chinese authorities before his death in March 2025 under suspicious circumstances while in Chinese custody in Vietnam. According to ICT, he had upset officials after refusing to organize a grand reception for Beijing-appointed Panchen Lama Gyaltsen Norbu during his visit to Golog. Although the school had received approval from the local education authorities before opening in July 2008, it has now been ordered to stop all operations.Over the years, the institution has offered courses in Tibetan, Chinese and English. Students also received vocational training in traditional weaving, tailoring, Tibetan medicine, Thangka art and information technology. Former students expressed sadness at the closure, saying more than 1,000 people studied at the school. At one point, it had between 800 and 1,000 students, including monks, nuns and lay people, ICT said.The ICT also said that officials have stopped new admissions in 2024. However, Tulku Hungkar Dorje had successfully appealed to allow existing students to complete their education. After the school closed, online tributes and photographs shared by Tibetans were removed due to censorship, according to the rights group.
