We saw the floods in Nepal. But will we ever know what happened in Tibet?

August 31, 2026 — 3:30pm

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It’s been five days since the deadly Nepal-Tibet flood. For my Tibetan community in exile, including here in Australia, it has been five days of anguish and profound helplessness. Tibetans have been desperately searching for information about what is happening on our side of the border, where the disaster began.

We saw the images from Nepal, devastating as they are: torrents of water and mud sweeping away homes, bridges and communities; families searching for loved ones; rescuers saving lives; and reporters on the ground telling the stories of those affected.

But across the border, in Tibet, there is a deafening silence. This is because Chinese-occupied Tibet is one of the most tightly controlled places on earth. Closed to independent journalists and researchers, the Chinese government tightly controls information coming in and out of Tibet. During a crisis like this, censorship goes into overdrive.

For Tibetans living in exile, this is a particularly cruel form of powerlessness. When disaster strikes, you want to know what........

© Brisbane Times