Reuters looks at the ways Tibetan ethnic identity plays out, even among young Tibetans who are well assimilated into Han Chinese culture and society:
There have been no protests in Kangding, a trade outpost turned tourism hub where the Himalayan highlands and the Chinese plains meet. Yet the recent anti-Chinese unrest elsewhere has exposed rifts that could set Qingcuo Duoji and his friends apart from their Han Chinese mates for a long time to come.
Tibetans and Chinese, particularly from the Han ethnic group which accounts for 90 percent of the population, have mingled here for centuries, but ethnic Tibetan identity still runs deep.
For most, that means a desire to preserve distinct linguistic and religious traditions that some fear are being diluted through government policy and assimilation.
