Claims have emerged that Chinese authorities are downplaying the extent of damage caused by recent floods in the Nepal-China border region, which have resulted in thousands of deaths and missing persons.
According to the Guardian on September 1, the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT) cited local sources indicating that the actual damage may be significantly greater than what the Chinese government has reported, with at least 300 homes reportedly destroyed. As of August 29, Chinese authorities announced that in Lhoka City, Tibet, 16 people had died and 546 were missing, with 27 buildings collapsed.
Human rights organizations and foreign media have pointed out that there has been a strong information control, with little footage or photographs from the disaster site and testimonies from survivors and families of the missing being made public. The BBC noted that foreign journalists have limited access to Tibet, forcing reliance on state media reports, which focus more on rescue efforts than the reality of the disaster.
In response, the Chinese government denied the allegations, asserting that it is transparently and promptly releasing damage information.
Meanwhile, Chinese authorities have been cracking down on the spread of 'fake news' related to the floods, recently announcing administrative penalties against ten internet users for disseminating claims that over 3,000 people had died.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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