On Saturday, July 6, 2013, peaceful celebrations of the Dalai Lama’s 78th birthday were violently interrupted in Nyitso, Tawu, Eastern Tibet. Two Tibetan monks were shot in the head and the crowd was tear gassed when Chinese police opened fire on a gathering of monks, nuns, and laypeople who were lighting incense and praying to mark what should have been a joyous occasion. The story went unreported in Western media while the crisis in Egypt was front page news, just as demonstrations in Turkey made headlines a week before. Why? Will Secretary of State John Kerry address China’s human rights and environmental failures when he meets with Vice Premier Wang Yang July 10 -11, or will these events inside of China be treated as China’s private business, not strategically or economically important on an international scale? While China leaks speculation of a softening approach to Tibet, and its ambassadors cut business deals with politicians in India, the U.S., and Europe, the brutality and violation of human rights against non-violent Tibetans continues unabated, and unreported. Why? When 119 Tibetans self-immolate, Western media covers the stories for a day. But the causes for the self-immolations go unreported. When Chinese deforestation and mining practices threaten the environment of Tibet with consequences for global climate change, it goes unreported in Western media. Why? Why pretend we don’t see China’s human rights and environmental failures when worldwide exposure and loss of face could serve as strong motivations to change? Are non-violence and environmental destruction not interesting? Or does China now influence our media as it recently influenced (but only temporarily) university administrators in Australia? China’s human rights violations against Tibetans and other minorities, the devastation it is wreaking on the environment, the imprisonment and torture of peaceful demonstrators, and relentless push to unlawfully expand its borders are the story of a nation run amok and unchecked. It is a story that has a global impact. Please look.
Posted on: Wed, 10 Jul 2013 16:50:35 +0000
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