Editor's note: Zhang Yongpan, a special commentator on current affairs for CGTN, is a research fellow and Director of the Xizang Research Office, Institute of Chinese Borderland Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. Zhang Hui, a special commentator on current affairs for CGTN, is an assistant research fellow at the Institute of Chinese Borderland Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. The article reflects the authors' opinions and not necessarily those of CGTN.

Human rights are the fundamental rights of individuals and groups, universally recognized based on shared moral, legal and cultural understandings. At the heart of human rights lies the respect for human dignity.

The white paper titled “Human Rights in Xizang in the New Era” issued on March 28, the 17th Serfs' Emancipation Day, well illustrates the significance of human rights in Xizang's modernization by stressing that "it is a common human aspiration for every individual to fully enjoy their human rights. This is also the goal of the Chinese people of all ethnic groups, including those in the Xizang Autonomous Region."

Prior to the democratic reform in 1959, Xizang was a society of feudal serfdom under theocratic rule, a society characterized by a rigidly-hierarchical social structure in which government officials, aristocrats and upper-class clergy exercised absolute control over serfs. This kind of social system left no room for the existence of human rights for the majority of the local population.

There was a common saying at the time: "Once a serf, a person remained a serf for life, so would their descendants." Over 95 percent of the region's population was illiterate. Medical care was extremely primitive and the average life expectancy was only 35.5 years.

After 1959, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) made respecting and safeguarding human rights a central priority in the governance of Xizang. Upholding a people-centered development philosophy, the government has focused on safeguarding national unity, strengthening ethnic solidarity and improving people's livelihoods as the motivations and ultimate goals of economic and social development in Xizang.

Since 1959, the cause of human rights in Xizang has undergone comprehensive development across areas such as education, healthcare, economy and culture. The region has made historic, all-round progress in the protection of human rights.

First, the right to development has seen historic achievements. Absolute poverty was eradicated in Xizang as early as 2019, and people's living standards have improved significantly. Its GDP rose from 174 million Chinese yuan ($23.94 million) in 1959 to 276.494 billion yuan in 2024.

Also in 2024, its total grain output exceeded 1.1 million tons to reach 1.129 million for the first time, meaning its grain output has remained above 1 million tons for 10 consecutive years. In addition, the per capita disposable income of rural residents and all residents in the region reached 21,578 yuan and 31,358 yuan in 2024, an 8.3 and 8.2 percent year-on-year increase, ranking first nationwide for both figures.

Before 1959, there was not even a single modern school in Xizang. The enrollment rate for school-age children was below 2 percent and the illiteracy rate registered over 95 percent. In striking contrast, by 2024, the gross enrollment rate in preschool education was 91.33 percent, the retention rate for nine-year compulsory education stood at 97.86 percent, the gross enrollment rate for senior high school reached 91.56 percent and the gross enrollment rate for higher education was 57.81 percent. In addition, the average life expectancy in Xizang increased from 35.5 years in 1951 to 72.5 years in 2021.

Secondly, the right to work which is a fundamental civil right and a necessary condition for securing the right to survival is fully protected. Before 1959, the people of Xizang had no rights to equal or free employment. Even groups who were not originally serfs often fell into servitude due to overwhelming debt, extortion or heavy taxation. Despite tireless labor every day, serfs could barely keep their heads above water. What's worse, in the event of natural disasters or extreme weather, even their minimal subsistence was not guaranteed.

Since 1959, however, as Xizang has undergone rapid development, the right of people to work has been secured. Today, the people of Xizang are guaranteed freedom of career choice and a decent income.

According to national statistics, in the first half of 2024, the average salary of employees in Xizang reached 11,546 yuan per month. Last year, 51,000 new urban jobs were created. The employment rate of college graduates in Xizang exceeded 95 percent, and about 648,000 rural residents successfully entered the non-agricultural workforce. These figures demonstrate that the people's right to work people is well protected.

Moreover, there have been remarkable achievements in safeguarding environmental rights, which is an emblematic right of a modern civilization and marks a new chapter in China's commitment to respecting and safeguarding human rights in Xizang.

In recent years, with the implementation of various ecological protection initiatives, a pattern of green development has begun to take shape, turning Xizang into one of the world’s best ecological environments and thereby providing a favorable ecological environment for the plateau's development.

Since 2016, over 99 percent of days in Xizang have recorded good or excellent air quality. In terms of pollution control, the local government has spared no efforts to regulate and rectify discharge outlets into rivers.

Xizang has completed the documentation and monitoring of 128 discharge points, with discharge water quality compliance reaching 100 percent. The region has also built new solid waste treatment facilities in 20 counties and new domestic sewage treatment facilities in 623 villages, raising the rural sewage treatment (or control) rate to 51.9 percent.

Efforts to protect the environment have also fostered new growth points. From 2016 to 2024, Xizang created an average of 516,000 green jobs per year. A total of 2.26 million farmers and herders currently benefit from the grassland ecological subsidies and reward policies.

In conclusion, the progress and development of human rights in Xizang is a snapshot and also the outcome of Chinese modernization, which upholds a vision of fairness and justice in society, comprehensive human development and harmonious coexistence between humanity and nature.

Today, people of all ethnic groups in Xizang share in the glory and dignity of the Chinese nation. Their rights to development, work and a healthy environment are safeguarded at an unprecedented level. Looking ahead, under the guidance of the CPC's strategy for governing Xizang in the new era, the region's human rights cause is bound to scale even greater heights.