China is facing accusations of restricting information about the scale of the deadly flash flood that struck the Kyirong area of Tibet before surging across the border into Nepal, where hundreds of deaths have been reported.
Tibetan Review, citing international media reports, said questions were being raised over whether Chinese authorities were limiting information emerging from the disaster-hit Tibetan region.
According to the report, China has officially reported seven deaths and 554 people missing on its side of the border. However, the publication argued that the lack of independent access to the affected areas makes it difficult to independently verify the full scale of casualties and destruction.
The report said videos showing severe flooding and appeals for assistance had reportedly disappeared from Chinese social media, while some local accounts and witness reports were also allegedly removed shortly after publication.
Chinese state media coverage has largely focused on rescue operations and instructions issued by the country’s leadership, with comparatively little footage or testimony from survivors in the affected Tibetan communities, according to the report.
Tibetan Review also cited international media reports describing difficulties in finding footage of the disaster on China’s tightly controlled internet, despite dramatic videos from the border area circulating internationally.
The scale of China’s emergency response has also drawn attention. Hundreds of emergency personnel have reportedly been deployed, while Premier Li Qiang visited the affected area and President Xi Jinping chaired an emergency meeting to coordinate the response.
However, the claims that China is deliberately concealing the true scale of the disaster have not been independently established
Tibet is subject to extensive restrictions on foreign journalists and independent researchers, making independent verification of developments in the region particularly difficult.
The flash flood originated on the Tibetan side of the border before sweeping through the Gyirong/Kyirong border area and into Nepal, causing widespread destruction and triggering major search-and-rescue operations on both sides.