China Focus: Internet becomes part of Tibetans' life

China Focus: Internet becomes part of Tibetans' life

LHASA, May 9 (Xinhua) -- Monastery life might be mostly aboutpreforming daily rituals and studying sutras, but Thupten stillfinds time to surf the Net.

"I watch movies, for example, Harry Porter," said the monk in hisearly thirties. Thupten joined Jokhang Temple when he was ateenager.

He has an iPhone and likes to play downloaded games on it.

He considers it harmless fun while pursuing his Buddhist studyand religious practice for most of the day.

Through the Internet, Thupten has learnt a lot about the worldoutside the monastery.

By the end of last year, Tibet Autonomous Region had a total of1.2 million Internet users, 90 percent of whom log on line throughcell phones and the rest through broadband services.

Compared with 450 million Internet users in China, the figure issmall but it accounts for nearly half the total population of Tibet.

Online chatting has changed Pasang Drolma's social life. Ataround 8 p.m. after the supper, she will always log on QQ, ahomebred online chatting service, to talk with family members, oldcollege classmates and friends living outside Tibet.

"The topic we talk about most recently is traveling in Tibet asthe summer is drawing near. Many of my friends outside of Tibet arevery keen to come here and I am the best consultant," said the 32-year-old woman living in Lhasa.

Internet has replaced the telephone and postal system to be themost frequently used communication tool, she said.

And it also is being used as a new way of shopping on the "Roofof the World," as Tibet is referred to.

Paldron, a bank clerk in Lhasa, bought lamps, kitchenware andeven a sofa for her new apartment on line.

"Lhasa is comparatively small and you cannot always find thebrand you want at shops here. Internet helps a lot," she said.

The only thing she does not like is the high freighting cost asmany online shops are based in east China.

The 30-year-old now always carries a small laptop in her bag.With a wireless connection, she can get on line everywhere in Lhasa.

According to the government of Tibet Autonomous Region, by theend of last year, 3G services covered seven cities, 73 county seats,416 townships and 28 major tourist sites in Tibet.

With the development of computer software based on the Tibetanlanguage, people can use the language when navigating the Internetor using computer applications.

In 2007, a team of computer scientists at the Tibet Universitydeveloped the Tibetan version of Windows and Office software.

Last year the same team also helped China Mobile, the maintelecom company in China, to develop a system so the Tibetanlanguage could be used on mobile phones.

"We are now working on digitizing Tibetan books and documents atthe university library and based on this work we plan to build adigital library open to the public," said Nyima Tashi, chiefscientist of the team. "I hope more and more people across the worldcan learn more about Tibet and the Tibetan culture through such adigital library."