3.15.2008
The Tibet Situation
"As I have always said, unity and stability under brute force is at best a temporary solution. It is unrealistic to expect unity and stability under such a rule and would therefore not be conducive to finding a peaceful and lasting solution." - His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama
Since March 10th (Tibetan Uprising Day) peaceful protests, and later riots, have broken out in Tibet. The Chinese government, which has controlled Tibet since their 1951 invasion, confirms between 7-10 dead though internal sources say the death toll is much higher. Meanwhile Tibetans and their supporters around the world have engaged in protests and actions in solidarity with those marching in Tibet.
Picture of protesters in Tibet.
"Hundreds of Tibetan exiles pressed ahead Tuesday with a march from northern India to their Himalayan homeland, defying a police ban on the demonstration against Beijing's hosting of the 2008 Olympics ... It was one of several events launched around the world Monday by Tibetans commemorating their 1959 uprising against China. ... Walking single file, waving Tibetan flags and holding aloft pictures of the Dalai Lama and Indian pacifist icon Mohandas K. Gandhi, some 350 exiles followed the road down from the mountains toward the plains of northern India."
The US ambassador to China and the EU have urged China to show "restraint" in dealing with the Tibetan protesters, while China has blamed the "sabotage" on a small "Dalai clique". Tibet's chief administrator Champa Phunstok claims that the protests are "really nothing" and that "everything is really great."
"Asked about the march, Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said, "Some ignorant monks in Lhasa abetted by a small handful of people did some illegal things that can challenge the social stability." He said monks were dealt with "according to the law," but gave no details."
Yes, we wouldn't want to give details, not when the upcoming Beijing Olympics are so close. After all, the Olympic torch is passing through Tibet, and we wouldn't want that marred with talk of human rights abuses. Even the current administration in America seems ready to look the other way, as the State Department drops China from their list of the top ten human rights violators.
"Perhaps it's because President George W. Bush really wants to go to the opening of the Olympic Games in Beijing this summer that China has been dropped from Washington's list of the top 10 countries violating human rights. There's nothing in the 63 pages in the annual State Department report on human rights in 190 countries to suggest China has been dropped from the top 10 on merit."
Anyone familiar with China's human-rights record knows that China has been brutally suppressing religious freedom for generations. This includes the indigenous faith traditions of China, various Christian denominations, Falun Dafa, and Buddhism. While some (State-controlled) religious freedom has been allowed in recent years, any faith seen as a political threat (that being any faith not controlled and overseen by China) is targeted as an enemy of the government. This is especially true of Tibetan Buddhism which China has been trying to subvert and control in a variety of ways in order to quell all remaining dissent in their occupation of Tibet.
I urge Pagans concerned about the religious freedom and human rights violations happening in Tibet
* For ongoing updates on the Tibetan uprising and connected protests, I would suggest checking out the Phayul.com web site.
Labels: Buddhism, China, Dalai Lama, human rights, Olympics, Religious Freedom, Tibet
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