Since Mao Tse-tung, back in the 1950s, succeeded in recreating the old Manchu empire, the Communist government of mainland China has had the problems colonial powers always have with disgruntled subject populations.

Since Mao Tse-tung, back in the 1950s, succeeded in recreating the old Manchu empire, the Communist government of mainland China has had the problems colonial powers always have with disgruntled subject populations. These problems have been worst in Tibet, where the natural instinct to resist foreign occupation has been fortified by strong attachment to the national religion, a highly distinctive form of Buddhism. Tulkus, or reincarnations of the Buddha, are especially revered by Tibetans, who have developed elaborate rules and rituals for identifying these "living Buddhas." This is vexing to the Communists, who want no authority figure in any part of their empire to be appointed by anyone but themselves. They have accordingly issued an edict that from September 1 of this year, all tulkus not approved by the State Religious Affairs Department will be "illegal and invalid." This makes official a longstanding policy. When, in 1995, the exiled Dalai Lama anointed a six-year-old boy, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, as a senior tulku, the Communists kidnapped the boy and his family, who have not been seen since. How all this squares with Article 36 of China's constitution, which guarantees freedom of religion, we leave readers to decide.