[JURIST] China has significantly restricted the freedom of movement [HRW report] for Tibetans and other minorities said Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] on Monday. Referencing a report [report] released by HRW last week, the rights group stated that China’s two-tiered passport issuing system essentially requires residents of certain areas mainly populated by minorities, such as the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) [BBC backgrounder] to provide more documentation than residents in other areas. HRW said the process for receiving passports is also much slower for minorities as they are subject to more delays, sometimes lasting years, and denials of passports without explanation. Conversely, those residents in the fast-track system only need approval from one office and the office must either issue a passport within 15-days or explain the reason for a denial. The group said they found evidence that the institution of the slow track system was partially motivated by the desire to stop religious travel as the Chinese government may view such activity as a “potential cover for subversive political activity.” HRW reported that in Chamdo, a prefecture in the TAR with a population of 650,000, only two passports have been issued in 2012.

China has faced widespread criticism of its treatment of Tibetans since the 2008 protests. Last April HRW reported [press release] that Nepal, under strong pressure from China, imposed increasingly harsh restrictions on Tibetan refugees [JURIST report]. Last February a Spanish court issued international arrest warrants [JURIST report] for retired Chinese president Jiang Zemin and former prime minister Li Peng [Britannica profiles] for their alleged involvement in China’s genocide of Tibetans. The warrants were issued after Spain indicted [JURIST report] former Chinese president Hu Jintao [BBC profile] in October 2013 in the ongoing genocide investigation. In November 2012 UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay [official profile] called on [JURIST report] China to address its human rights abuses in Tibet. In February 2012 HRW demanded [JURIST report] that China release several hundred Tibetan prisoners who were captured while travelling and forced into political re-education camps.