Free Tibet
I’ve been reading up on the Dalai Lama lately because of all the Olympics hype. I had no idea that this man is so incredible– he’s been kicked out of his homeland and separated from his people for decades, but he still refuses to call the Chinese his enemies. A recent Time magazine article quotes him as saying, “Before, destruction of your enemy was victory for your side. Now, destruction of your enemy is destruction of yourself.” In an increasingly shrinking world, needless fighting only hurts everyone. One disrupted economy, one deployed military, affects everyone in the global system. This is why the Dalai Lama is calling not for independence from China, but for more autonomy so that they can protect their own unique culture. He believes that, as a people, they can still exist culturally without specific rights to land. They share a common foundation that is not necessarily tied to the ground. Tibetans serve as an inspiration to refugees all over the world.
The following quote was taken from the Tibetan exiled government’s website, and I believe it is a cry for global action. These people have been denied many basic freedoms for decades, and their beloved leader lives in exile. How long will the West keep turning a blind eye? To support the oppression of innocent people is to harm ourselves.
” We hope the international community, led by the UN, and all the major countries will give due importance to human lives instead of to temporary economic gains when dealing with China. If the current trend of many countries bowing down to China’s pressure continues then we fear for the future of humanity as a whole. What is happening in Tibet is not “an internal affair of China”; it is a part of the global problem. “
Give due importance to human lives…that phrase has been haunting me. How easily we forget.
“How long will the West keep turning a blind eye?”
When China becomes economically disadvantageous to the West.
“To support the oppression of innocent people is to harm ourselves.”
How so? How does freeing Tibet, or challenging China on this issue help “ourselves”?
“Give due importance to human lives…that phrase has been haunting me. How easily we forget.”
Although I agree with the exiles sentiment, I don’t believe that many international governments agree with him/her.
With all of that said, I definitely support the freedom of Tibet. I just cynically question the reality of the movement. The population of China, due to the controlled press coverage there, perceives the actions of the Dalai Lama to be detrimental to the nation.
So then, I hope Tibet gains its freedom, I just don’t see it as a reality.
I see the autonomy of Tibet as an inevitability. People who say otherwise need to look at how much China has changed rather than look at China statically.
Freeing Tibet sounds great, and the Dalai Lama seems like a great guy. Until you learn that prior to China’s decision to exercise more fully their suzerainty over Tibet the Tibetan people were pretty much the slaves of Buddhist monks. The people had no more rights under the lamas than they do under Beijing. All land was owned by the monasteries. All the produce of the farmers was subject to confiscation by the monks. I realize that things are no different now, but the only people who stand to benefit from “freeing Tibet” aren’t the Tibetan people, but the lamas.
If anybody thinks that China is such a dynamic and progressive state that it is likely to allow Tibet self government in the forseeable future, then you must be unbelievably optimistic or abismally uninformed. China is strategically changing in very small, incremental ways that seem advantageous to it at the time. China has benefited greatly from making gradual economic changes that have brough in billions of dollars, but it stands to gain nothing (repeat: nothing) from freeing Tibet.
But the real question posed in this post relates to what obligation the world (especially the US, I assume) has in this matter. I would say next to none. Even if it would be a positive thing for Tibet to be free, China is not going to do it on its own, and it certainly will not under international pressure. In response to that pressure, however, China will use its enormous economic weight to sabatoge the countries that embarass it, especially at this crucial Olympic time when China is on the world stage.
I just don’t think freeing Tibet is an achievable goal, and it “isn’t a mountain worth dying on,” to quote a famous professor.
Let’s not look at what China stands to gain from freeing Tibet, but rather what have they got to lose?
It would only improve their world image, remove a political problem that’s been plaguing them for decades, and likely better their relations with most democratic nations in the world system. Especially if Tibet is only seeking cultural autonomy, I don’t see how China can continue to deprive these people of basic freedoms.
If China gives Tibet any degree of autonomy then other culturally distinct provinces will heighten their agitation for similar relaxation of Chinese control. China’s system of autocratic capitalism depends on the imposition of a shared culture narrative that is at odds with the kind of cultural federalism that Tibetan autonomy would open the door to.
Thats the argument anyway.
here’s a blog that covers this topic in some depth
http://stephiblog.wordpress.com/2008/03/28/the-dalai-lama/
and provides this link as well
Friendly Feudalism: The Tibet Myth
http://www.michaelparenti.org/Tibet.html
It baffles me that people spend so much time getting indignant over one country (in which they don’t live and know little about) peacefully occupying another country (in which they don’t live and know little about), when their own country is running a meat grinder occupation that cost half a billion dollars a day.
And you can actually do something about the meatgrinder occupation! You can’t do jack about Tibet!
You’re right about people getting up in arms about things they can do nothing about, but you’re wrong when you say peaceful occupation. The Chinese are now nothing but fascists. They make me miss Slobodan and Sadaam: at least they made no bones about being human rights violating bastards.
Oh please. China’s human rights record sucks, but comparing them to a genocidal maniac and a truly totalitarian dictator is ridiculous.
Miss Slobodan? The Chinese aren’t implementing Operation Horseshoe version 2.0.
I knew someone would give me a hard time about “peaceful.” I wanted to say, “peaceful in comparison to the occupation of Iraq or Palestine,” but I try to hold to a minimal standard of elegance and lack of pedantry in my commenting.
Semantic pedantry is overrated and too often used to pad inane statements.
Jesse, for some reason your comments were marked as spam. I rescued them from the filter. Sorry about that.
What a perceptive spam filter…
You beat me to it JH
haha . funny guys. really, im laughing. no, really!
thanx david. i was wondering what happened…
really, i am still chuckling.
drink beer? i’ll buy! hope you like the dark stuff. geary’s is the best. well, for my locality anyway.
I prefer Dutch, if you have any.
I have to give it to Jesse, Geary’s is the real deal.
I wish I could find it down here……
Denney: What’s up with the new distinguished and intellectual look? Not that you didn’t look distinguished and intellectual before, just askin’…
Someone told me I looked like I was twelve in my other picture. Naturally, I reacted.
The date of the older picture was from 2004 (my junior year of high school). I resolved to update my picture to 2008.