unitex@rubbs.fidonet.org (unitex) (09/20/89)
* Ported to UNITEX by TibetNet The following article was written by Steven Marshall and appears in the September/October issue of TOWARD FREEDOM (volume 38 number 4) in an edited form. The article appears here complete. For prompt replies to your comments, queries (which are all welcomed) please contact the source of the TIBET CONFERENCE at TIBETNET as follows: Data Line: 201-662-8274 Bitnet: rutgers!rubbs!107!535!Indira.Singh Fido: 1:107/535 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ TIBET:LITTLE TIME FOR PATIENCE Two months before student protests triggered the imposition of martial law in the capital of the People's Republic of China, martial law had already been slammed into place in Lhasa,capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region of China.The decree came after three days of demonstrations which had turned violent when rooftop police gunned down unarmed protesters calling for freedom.They had chosen to march on the anniversary of last year's mass-bludgeoning of monks by police within the supremely venerated Jokhang Temple. The violence was restricted to the dwindling zone of central Lhasa which remains Tibetan.Non-Tibetan platoons of People's Armed Police staged short assaults which left hundreds dead or injured by gunshot or beating.Tibetans,desisting taking up arms,fought back with stones. Authorities in Beijing and Lhasa are eager that little be known of actual conditions or popular opinion in Tibet,intoning incessant warnings against"meddling in China's internal affairs".Outsiders are provided with a host of official publications in all major languages offering instruction in the correct view of Tibet.Locals suggesting another truth, whether in a whisper or in a march, are deemed "counterrevolutionaries", charged with "splitting the Motherland","rumormongering",etc. Officials insist that Tibet's packed prisons contain no political prisoners because China's criminal code doesn't use the term"ideological crime". During the latest surge of unrest in Lhasa, which began in 1987, Tibetans have pressed small notes into the hands of foreign wittnesses.Printed individually on hand-carved wooden blocks in the same millenium-old fashion as religious literature, the notes proclaim, "Tibet is a free and independent country. Chinese invaders quit Tibet. Long live His Holiness the Dalai Lama." The note is a death warrant for any Tibetan possessor. China dismisses claims that Tibet was an independent country or was forcibly annexed in 1950. Beijing explains that China has always been a multi-national country.Infact, even the Mongolians led by the great Khans, who conquered most of Asia including China, were simply trying to "unite the Motherland". Tibetans,Mongolians,Uighurs,Kazaks,Manchurians,along with the 51 other officially registerd minorities, are deemed "China's nationalities".The territory upon which they dwell is, or should be, China. Perhaps this is worrisome to neighboring nations where large territories are home to peoples China calls her nationalities. Huge military presences guard against further Chinese colonialism under the guise of "reunification." The 1987 demonstration came at the height of Deng's economic reforms. With business booming in Lhasa, authorities insisted "past excesses" were over and Tibetans were happy, prosperous, and free.Yet Tibet came unglued.Why do they persist in provoking the iron fist of their unwanted step-motherland? In Beijing students protested for weeks,erected the Goddess of Liberty and Democracy,and plunged the government into turmoil before a threatened crackdown became nightmarish reality.In Lhasa the pause between action and reaction is swift,often only minutes.Last December 10th,a monk carrying the banned Tibetan flag around the Jokhang Temple was shot through his head at point blank range by a policeman.No warning shot preceeded.The march commemorated International Human Rights Day. The first thirty years of communist rule took an undeniable toll on Tibet.Tens of thousands of Tibetans died fighting the Chinese during the 1950 "Peaceful Liberation".The Great Leap Forward wrought widespread starvation by forced communalization.In 1959 the ruthless oppression of the Lhasa Uprising resulted in the Dalai Lama's escape to India and imprisonment or death for anyone failing to soundly denounce him.Tibet,already shattered,was physically destroyed during the Ten Years' Cultural Revolution,the seed of regeneration concealed in the hearts of the survivors. Though the effect of Chinese rule has been genocidal,their current preference is the transformation of Tibet into a cultural photocopy of the provinces to the east.Obstacles "must be removed as one would a rock in the road".A sixth of Tibetans have been removed from the living.Half of Tibet was absorbed into China when the victorious Marxists redrew their map and rewrote their history. Deng's attempt at crafting a New China confronts Tibet with more subtle,yet dangerous,forms of diminution.The new policies have fuelled frustration and desperation,sparking recent demands for freedom. Although several monasteries have reopened in recent years,most operate under close supervision of "democratic committees" of monks chosen by local party officials.No monk or nun may legally live at a religious institution without the approval of the committee.Unofficial residence occurs but,as with as with anything unofficial in China,carries a latent and long-lived potential for punishment. Buddhism in Tibet degenerates rapidly due to the extreme paucity of surviving well-trained Lamas and restrictions on teachings.Nearly all Tibetans see the essence and institution of Buddhism as the mind,heart and backbone of their country.They are heartbroken and increasingly desperate at seeing it wither under the Chinese hand.That authorities orchestrate a dog-and-pony show,conjuring up the spectacle of a Buddhism befitting a circus arena,adds mocking insult to crippling injury. Belying Chinese statistics,education for Tibetans is woeful.Few proceed beyond middle school.Classes from high school level onward are taught in Chinese language.The government recently announced plans to implement Tibetan language classes at Tibet University by the turn of the century.By then,only farmers,nomads,and historians may know the language.In joining the mainstream dominated by Chinese language,a Tibetan sacrifices language and culture,usually assuming a lower echelon job.Better positions are for those with better educations- and connections. Tibet's two-tier economy is a daily torment for most locals.Few enter mainstream economy,which offers incomes double that of typical Lhasans and often quadruple that of rural dwellers.Unemployment,inflation,and shortages plague Tibet disproportionately.Connections rule the economy.This "guanxi" is a hallmark of New China.Being Tibetan is too often a disconnection.Despite policy,racism is rampant.Locals complain that the Chinese often "arrive with only a toothbrush and a mug and depart with heavy trunks". Tibetans quietly seethe at hearing how improved is their lot now that Beijing has poured billions of yuan into Tibet's developement.The magnitude of the spending is indisputable given the advanced sinification of Tibet.What has been built is an infrastructure which primarily supports Han colonization. Tibetans have benefitted last and little from development but have paid most dearly.The Panchen Lama,Tibet's second spiritual leader,resided in Beijing where he held a prominent government post.On a rare visit to Tibet last January he shocked China and delighted Tibetans by voicing such sentiments publicly.His death,a few days later is shrouded in mystery. The torrent of mostly Han newcomers to Tibet did not begin until the early 1980's.Tibetan asphyxiation under this avalanche is the root cause of the latest outburst.Population transfer could soon complete what starvation,imprisonment,and execution began.Repopulation means the evisceration of the remnants of Tibet.The few spectacles remaining attempt to entertain officials,pacify locals,and lure tourists. The true tally of non-Tibetans in Tibet is officially denied.Not counted are the military, several hundred thousand strong,or the ubiquitous police.Not counted are beaurocrats,professionals, and business people under multi-year contracts.Not counted are shopkeepers or workers.Not counted are their families who accompanied them.They all bear residence cards for some other province. To statisticians they are shadows but their impact on Tibet is real. "Autonomy" is a political mirage.Had Beijing delivered on its endless promises or made real the explicit guarantees of freedom in their current constitution,independence might never have become an issue.After forty years of deceit and disappointment Tibetans have no confidence Beijing will right wrongs.Most believe they must heal their own wounds.Independence is an obvious path to self- determination. The essential issue is freedom.Freedom from exploitation,hypocrisy, and oppression.Freedom to think,act,and worship as they believe correct.Separated from these freedoms,plied with empty assurances,and compelled to parrot the party line,Tibetans are ever more resolved not to see their race or culture perish silently. They know expressions of their distress are unlikely to send the Chinese packing.Yet,resistance and demonstration are unavoidable.If significant relief is not achieved in a decade or two they will take their place in history books.Their Buddhist faith mitigates dread of death-or of life.Facing new threats in the 1980's many will continue to risk the consequences of protest,"to die as Tibetans rather than live as Chinese". --- Patt Haring | United Nations | FAX: 212-787-1726 patth@sci.ccny.cuny.edu | Information | BBS: 201-795-0733 patth@ccnysci.BITNET | Transfer Exchange | (3/12/24/9600 Baud) -=- Every child smiles in the same language. -=-