Lhasa, September 23. In an exclusive interview with Xinhua news agency, Gyaincain Norbu, Chairman of Tibet Autonomous Region, said, "The law's promulgation and implementation have fully manifested the state's ample respect and guarantee of the right of ethnic minorities to manage their internal affairs; as well as the state's adherence to the principle of ensuring equality, unity, and common prosperity among all nationalities. To solve ethnic problems and promote ethnic minorities work, it is essential to vigorously develop the economy of minority nationality regions. In the past 10 years, Tibet has persisted in taking economic construction as the central task in continuously deepening reform, opening up wider, and actively applying the series of special policies and flexible measures empowered by the central authorities in liberating and expanding productive forces. In 1993, the region's economic growth rate reached 8.1 per cent and per capita net income of peasants and herders was 521 yuan, while the food

and clothing problems were basically solved for the majority of people Considerable progress was also made in education, science and technology, culture, health, radio and television, and other fields of social endeavour". Gyaincain Norbu furthermore said: "Religion has a longstanding history and extensive influence in Tibet. Through promulgating and implementing the 'Law on Regional Autonomy for Minority Nationalities' citizens' freedom of religion is effectively guaranteed, and the lawful rights and interests of Buddhist monks and believers and their normal religious activities are protected. In the past 10 years, most of the traditional ethnic religious festivals have been revived in Tibet, and some 1,600 monasteries and religious venues have been revamped or newly built. Following the Tibetan Autonomous Regional People's Congress' adoption of the 'Provisions for Studying, Using, and Developing Written and Spoken Tibetan' in 1987, the autonomous regional government also worked out the 'detailed rules for

implementation' accordingly. Today both Tibetan and Han languages are used in important documents issued by organs at various levels and at important meetings held in Tibet". (EuroTibet News N·3)