All of us at Students for a Free Tibet (SFT) express our deepest condolences to the victims of the devastating earthquake that struck Tibet and China last week. The human toll of this tragedy is staggering and our thoughts are with all of the families who have lost loved ones and the millions whose homes have been destroyed and are now displaced.
Tibetans in Tibet and around the world have been offering prayers and raising money to support the millions of Chinese people who have been impacted by this tragedy. In a statement issued on May 12th, the Dalai Lama offered his "deep sympathies and heartfelt condolences" to all of those affected.
Many people do not realize that the epicenter of the earthquake is in an area of eastern Tibet now administered under China's Sichuan province. This place is called "Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture" by the Chinese government but "Aba" is actually "Ngaba" which is part of Amdo, the northeastern province of historical Tibet. The epicenter itself is in the Tibetan county of "Lungu" which the Chinese call "Wenchuan" and where, according to China's 2005 census information, at least 18.6% of the population is Tibetan.
It is throughout this eastern Tibetan region – Amdo and Kham – that a majority of the Tibetan protests have occurred over the past two months and now this natural disaster is compounding the suffering that Tibetans are experiencing at the hands of Chinese authorities conducting a brutal crackdown on the popular, and predominantly peaceful, uprising against China's occupation. Just last week, only a day's drive from the earthquake's epicenter, more than 60 Tibetan nuns were brutally beaten and arrested for staging two separate peaceful demonstrations calling for the release of political prisoners, the return of the Dalai Lama, and independence for Tibet.
And while we have very little information about the impact of the earthquake on Tibetans because the areas around the epicenter remain cut off from the outside world, many fear the worst for thousands of Tibetans who remain detained or missing as a result of the crackdown. For instance, SFT has received unconfirmed but deeply distressing reports that many hundreds of Tibetans may have died when a large prison near Wenchuan collapsed. Official Chinese media has confirmed damage to a number of prisons in the area but no detailed information has been released.
It is encouraging to see the incredible rescue efforts and increasingly open media reporting taking place in China but we have heard almost no information about relief efforts in the affected Tibetan areas. However, on the day the earthquake struck the regional government issued an urgent official document entitled “Combining work on anti-separatism and safeguarding stability with disaster relief work.” Considering the Chinese government's history of systematic oppression and disenfranchisement of Tibetans, we are gravely concerned that Tibetans impacted by the disaster will not receive equal consideration and assistance. The international community has rightly condemned the heinous efforts by the Burmese junta for blocking aid and relief to minority and dissident populations affected by the cyclone in Burma and must seek to prevent similar practices by Chinese authorities in Tibet.
We call upon the Chinese government to immediately cease its crackdown in Tibet and fulfill its international commitments to provide immediate medical care and humanitarian assistance to everyone affected by the earthquake. Furthermore, in the interests of ensuring that China's response to the natural disaster does not further exacerbate the suffering of Tibetans, international media and observers should be immediately allowed into all affected regions.
The inspiring and selfless efforts of tens of thousands of ordinary people in response to the earthquake suggest that something positive can emerge from the devastation. At the same time, recent history suggests that it is vital to keep the light of global public scrutiny on the Chinese authorities now to prevent further abuses and suffering.
Our thoughts and prayers are with all of those affected by the earthquake in China and Tibet.
Students for a Free Tibet International Headquarters
We suggest donations for the earthquake relief effort be made through Tibet Foundation and Mercy Corps.
3 comments:
Necessary preconditions for further contacts ,Dalai
Several contacts between Dalai and central government have been held so far. With enormous tolerance, honesty and patience, the
Chinese central government hopes the Dalai clique stop the activities to split China, stop instigating violence, and stop
spoiling the Beijing Olympics and get ready for the upcoming talks.
However, we can still hear from the Dalai clique some nice verbal words. Dalai Lama speaks politically and peacefully but other
Tibetan factions that still act violently. It's hard to imagine the upcoming talks could be conducted smoothly under the
circumstances. If the situation cannot be changed, the central government has good reasons to stop further contact with Dalai
Lama and his followers.
Dalai disqualified as a "negotiator"
Dalai has appeared to be a representative of Tibetan people. So let's discuss by which standard can he declare he is able
to represent Tibet.
Dalai is a representative of theocracy in Tibet before the New China was founded in 1949. His serfdom system had long been
lagging behind the democratic systems in other countries, not to mention the de facto slavery at his rule. Serfdom and slavery
were the two most hated backward things that no one wants to esteem. Freedom and democracy, which Dalai now repeatedly extols,
denounce the old serfdom and slavery systems.
At the time being, Dalai has only two choices. One is to be a living Buddha and keeps himself away from politics; the other
one is to be a person who really cares for people and who has no religious belief. He cannot be both. However, even if he takes
off his cassock, he still has to admit he is a Chinese citizen. Chinese citizens have to uphold the Constitution which protects
the unity of China's sovereignty. As a Chinese citizen, Dalai should comply with China's laws and stop separating his country.
He is surely disqualified as a negotiator for the upcoming talks.
Where can he go?
Dalai Lama has declared time and again that Tibet is part of China, and so is Taiwan. But when it comes to action, he
resorted to the Western countries for mediation in internal affairs of China. It makes people doubt whether he is intended to
solve the conflict in a peaceful matter within the jurisdiction of China.
China's central government has brought about major economic progress, as well as democracy, to Tibet which has made
Tibetans' human rights improving significantly, as compared to the past times when Dalai ruled. It should be a basis of trust
to admit the reality when the central government and Dalai Lama sit down and negotiate.
I suppose it must be a real tiring thing for him to fly non-stop around the globe at his age. However, does what he has
done so far, lead to a beneficial result for Tibetan residents as well as people of other ethnic groups living in China, as we
expect? He surely has to think carefully. Time is not on his side, neither power nor the truth is. He needs to be both rich in
political wits and valor during his following talks with the central government. He needs to respect history and progress. Back
to the mainstream thinking and be a lawful and responsible citizen first! Otherwise, he will be totally abandoned by both his
people and the history.
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