Tibet: The Rest of the Story Yesterday I posted a report on Tibet written by staff members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee who visited the Tibetan Autonomous Region of China in 2010. I would encourage everyone interested in Tibet to read it. The report dispels many myths most Americans have about Tibet and Chinese policy there. As can be read China has invested vast resources in Tibet to build a modern infrastructure, including transportation, communication and electrification for the Tibetan people. In addition the Chinese government subsidizes housing and education for Tibetans. The central government has invested large sums of money to reconstruct and maintain Tibetan temples and other cultural landmarks. The government allows temples and monasteries to function as religious institutions and allows young people 18 years old to be recruited as monks. Han Chinese migration to Tibet is not government policy but the result of the freedom of Chinese of whatever nationality to travel and work within their own country, just like here. There are also many Tibetans who leave Tibet to travel and work in other parts of China. As the report also states there are problems and tensions in Tibet, but they are no more severe than in many other countries, including our own. Since the Chinese government is investing vast amounts of money into Tibet, raising Tibetan living standards and restoring Tibetan cultural relics and since the Tibetan people are offered housing and other subsidies and are exempt from family planning restrictions that Han Chinese are subject to, why is Tibet such a tinderbox, and why is there such a hue and cry about freeing Tibet from Chinese rule? Well, there have been dislocations brought on by modernization and culture contact, and there has been an influx of Han Chinese into Lhasa the Tibetan capital, but these sorts of things happen all over the world, including right here in the US. But it also needs to be acknowledged that there are few Han Chinese who have settled in areas of Tibet outside of Lhasa. There is absolutely no incentive for Han Chinese to live in the Tibetan countryside. Since there is no Chinese governmental policy of forced migration of Han Chinese to Tibet, why would Han Chinese want to endure the rigors of living in a hostile Tibetan environment beyond the confines of a modern Lhasa? So again the question, why Tibet? The answer is simple. In 1959 a clique of elite Tibetans led by the Dalai Lama and supported by the US CIA staged a rebellion in Tibet, in order to wrest Tibet from the Chinese nation. They failed. A segment of the Tibetan religious , political and economic elite and their followers sought refuge in India and set up an exile community committed to separating Tibet from China as an independent nation beholden to the US and its Western alliance. No Chinese government of whatever ideological or political persuasion would ever allow that to happen. The Dalai Lama is a religious leader who has an iconic status in Tibet. He is thus highly regarded and adulated by most Tibetans. While insisting that he does not want independence for Tibet the Dalai Lama has made it very clear that he wants to return to Tibet not just as a religious leader but as a political leader as well. He and his entourage want to reestablish their leading role in Tibetan society. In order to do so The Dalai Lama and his followers foment demonstrations and protests to press their demands. These protests occasionally become disruptive and are put down by security forces. This is part of a political struggle that has little or nothing to do with how China administers Tibet. In actual fact the protests and demonstrations exacerbate conditions and force the Chinese to impose restrictions on those elements in Tibetan society, primarily the monks, who agitate for the Dali Lamas return as both a spiritual and political leader. There are grievances that some, if not many, Tibetans have. That is to be expected, dont we all? And the Dalai Lama is a force to be reckoned with. There is however room for dialogue. China has changed dramatically over the last few decades. So has Tibet, as the report I cited shows. It seems to me that time is running out for the Dalai Lama and his attempt to reimpose his hegemony over Tibet. Times are getting desperate, hence the need for desperate actions to up the ante. That, as far as I can tell, is the ultimate reason for the surge in self-immolation suicides that have resulted in the death of over 100 young Tibetan monks over the last few years. These are politically motivated acts done under the guise of Buddhism and non-violence. The Dalai Lama recognizes that these acts go against both the precepts of Buddhism and the principles of non-violence, yet he refuses to proscribe and denounce the practice. Suicide is suicide and should never be condoned. Young people can be swayed by religious and political demagogues to sacrifice themselves. We condemn suicide bombers not only for the human carnage their acts produce but also for the tragic death of the young person involved. No young person contemplates suicide as a political statement unless they are cajoled and persuaded to do so by someone who holds sway over their minds. It is the result of cynical brainwashing by those who stand to gain by the sacrifice of their acolytes. Listen to the statements of those who excuse self-immolation and read the statement of the Dalai Lama himself, in his attempt to rationalize this horrific practice of human self-sacrifice. The Dalai Lamas statement is self-serving. He places the onus of self-immolation on the shoulders of impressionable youth. As a revered person of authority the Dalai Lama is obliged to stop these horrific acts. It is his shame that he does not condemn the practice and persuade young Tibetans from engaging in it. There is no reason for young Tibetans to commit suicide other than to promote the political agenda of the Dali Lama and his elitist followers. It is not in the interest of the Tibetan people. The interests of the Tibetan and other Chinese people are in reconciliation and reform. The major obstacle to achieving that goal is the Dali Lamas desperate attempt to hold back the tide of history by sacrificing the youth of Tibet. phayul/news/article.aspx?id=33263 https://soundcloud/copy-right/is-self-immolation-non-violent
Posted on: Fri, 24 Jan 2014 06:37:23 +0000
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