Multi-ethnic coexistence in the Bath community of Duodi Street in Lhasa promotes neighborhood harmony

China News Service, Lhasa, September 23 (Laba Dolma Pema Yuzhen) Recently, reporters walked into Duodi Street, Lhasa City, Tibet Autonomous Region. In the gold and silver processing market in the Bass community of Duodi Street, business is done in the front yard and life is lived in the backyard. Merchants of Han, Tibetan, Hui, Bai, Yi and other ethnic groups operate and live together here.

The picture shows residents of the Bath community celebrating the Torch Festival. Photographed by Labba Dolma

“I didn’t know Tibetan customs and culture before.” Zhang Huiping, a merchant from the Bai ethnic group, recalled that when he first arrived, he didn’t even know which elements of silver jewelry were popular. The Tibetan friends around her became her "teachers" and taught her Tibetan jewelry preferences. "These exchanges have really helped the business."

When the business is done, the neighbors are also familiar. Lamu, a Tibetan businessman, said frankly that in the past, people occasionally had small frictions due to living habits and placement of items. Today, there are fewer minor frictions and more tolerance. "We give each other specialties if we have any. Although there are sometimes language barriers, we gradually become familiar with each other's habits. Distant relatives are not as good as close neighbors."

The picture shows members of the volunteer service team walking into a store to understand the demands of merchants. Photographed by Labba Dolma

This change stems from the multi-ethnic and embedded grassroots governance explored by the community. In response to governance problems such as poor language communication and different customs, Bass Community established a multi-ethnic volunteer mediation team to allow volunteers who are familiar with the language and customs of their own ethnic groups to enter the store to carry out policy publicity, conflict mediation, and safety inspections.

"Some conflicts are not big, but someone needs to be willing to sit down and listen." It is these inconspicuous little things that volunteers do. Data show that since the establishment of the mediation team, the mediation team has carried out 480 services, 30 volunteers of all ethnic groups have served 3,000 hours, and the number of ethnic, business and neighborhood disputes in the jurisdiction has dropped by 60% year-on-year.

From "not understanding" to being willing to "teach a lesson", from friction to tolerance, the change is not at a single moment, but accumulated in daily interactions. One shop is connected to another, and one neighborhood is connected to another. Businesses come and go, and friendships are slowly accumulated through the exchanges. (over)