China has completed the renovation of the Dalai Lamas' residence in Tibet

Beijing - China has completed a seven-year renovation of the Potala Palace in the Tibetan capital of Lhasa, which was the residence of the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama until he fled to Indian exile following a failed uprising against Chinese communist rule 50 years ago. This was reported today by the AP agency.
    The restoration of the monument, which included repairs to the summer palace of the Dalai Lamas, Norbulingka, cost nearly 44 million dollars, according to a report from the New China agency today. The Potala Palace is now reportedly able to accommodate 1,000 visitors daily.
    In total, over 189,000 workers were involved in the reconstruction efforts, wrote New China. For another 14 million dollars, the Sakya Monastery, which houses ancient Buddhist texts, was also restored.
    The Potala Palace is one of the Tibetan monuments that survived the Chinese Cultural Revolution, during which a vast number of monasteries and other historical sites were destroyed from 1966 to 1976.
    Although palaces have stood at the site of the current Potala since the seventh century, the existing building dates back to the reign of the fifth Dalai Lama, who began its construction in 1645.
    According to the Chinese government, the palace repair project is part of a plan to promote Tibetan culture and language, as well as strengthen the economy of the region, where tourism plays a major role. The tourism promotion plan for Tibet includes the restoration of 22 cultural monuments.
    "The restoration of these three key cultural monuments is an important part of caring for Tibetan culture," stated Liu Yingtong, a member of the Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party, who attended the ceremonial event on Sunday in the square in front of the Potala Palace towering over Lhasa.
    Many Tibetans living in exile, however, point out that the cultural heritage of Tibet is threatened by the restrictions imposed by the Chinese government against the indigenous Buddhist religion of this Himalayan region and the Tibetan language, and in the last three decades also by the mass, government-organized immigration of Han Chinese, who make up the majority ethnic group in China.
    Tensions between Tibetans and Beijing were further escalated by the unrest against the Chinese government in March 2008 in Lhasa. Beijing sent military reinforcements to the Tibetan areas to suppress the unrest and intensified its criticism of the Dalai Lama, whom it accuses of provoking the violence.