London, December 18 1994. According Tibet Information Network, "Controversy has flared in the British press over a major European Union development project in Tibet which human rights groups and aid experts say was planned largely in secrecy and without participation from local Tibetans. The project supports a Chinese plan to increase food supplies which could lead to future migration to Tibet, say the groups. The EU's top officials strongly refuted the allegations, which were published today in The Observer and in a briefer report in The Independent. Foreign aid organisations and experts working in Tibet had described the project in favourable terms, Peter Guilford, the Commission's spokesman for external economic relations, told, The Observer yesterday. He named Save the Children UK and Medecins sans Frontieres Belgium, amongst the only westerners in the world with development experience in the area, as groups which had 'participated' in the drafting of the project. Both organisations denied the claims. 'W

e have not participated in the drafting of the project', said a spokesperson for Medecins sans Frontieres Belgium (MSF) last night. Save the Children Fund (SCF) issued a similar statement. 'We have not participated in the formulation of the project', it said, adding that they had not yet evaluated the scheme. MSF said it had decided not to take part in the project". (EuroTibet News N·9)