Yesterday, 10 March 2000, the traditional manifestation for a Free Tibet
took place in Vienna, Austria. It was organised by SAVE TIBET,
Gesellschaft fuer bedrohte Voelker (Society for endangered people) and
Tibetan Community Austria. About 100 people gathered at Ballhausplatz in
front of the Austrian Government buildings, where the message of His
Holiness the Dalai Lama was read. Then the demonstrators walked through
the busy shopping streets of the city centre to the Chinese Embassy.
This year, demonstrators were stopped by a police-built fence across the
street at the corner before the embassy. A Chinese photographer took
pictures from behind the barrier. The demonstration was concluded
lighting 120 candles in memory of the 1,200,000 Tibetans who have lost
their lives as a consequence of the Chinese occupation, prayers and
songs including the Tibetan national anthem.
The number of participants was 100, about the same number as last year.
Pictures will be presented on our web site www.logic.at/tibet/ soon.
The evening programme was made up of Tibetan tea and soup in the Tibetan
restaurant, and later a Free Tibet Party where the movie "Tibets Stolen
Child" was screened for the first time in Austria.
Today, SAVE TIBET members meet at the Tibetan restaurant for their
annual gathering, where the film on the Panchen Lama is shown again.
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8. THE DRAGON IN THE LAND OF SNOWS
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Dagens Nyheter (Daily News), Sweden, March 10, 2000
Tibet and China. Today, exactly 41 years ago, the uprising broke out in
Lhasa, culminating with the Dalai Lama's dramatic escape to India. On
the basis of a recently published book by a Tibetan scientist, Rolf
Jonsson depicts the modern history of the conflict.
THE TIBETAN ISSUE, that is, Tibet's relation to China, has been of
concern to many people in the West since the Chinese army marched into
the capital of Lhasa in 1951.
Some European and American observers have wanted to see the Chinese
annexation of Tibet, and the subsequent reforms, as a necessary and
beneficial modernization of the country, which was regarded by them as
backward and bogged in superstition. Another group of Western observers,
which have gradually come to dominate in the debate, are instead
speaking of genocide, a destroyed cultural heritage, environmental
destruction, and China as a exploiting colonial power in Tibet.
Also, it seems undisputable that a ruthless exploitation of the
country's resources has been taking place, and is still going on. The
huge virgin forests in the Southeast have been cut down with a
tremendous speed, which has aggravated the serious floodings which have
struck China in recent years. The wildlife, too, has been drastically
reduced. The large herds of wild ass and antelopes, described by
European travelers from the first half of the 20th century, are now
almost totally gone, even if it should also be noted that vast national
reserves have been established in recent years.
An increasingly outspoken choir of critics, often supported by famous
rock artists and film stars from Hollywood, is also talking of
deposition of nuclear waste and the stationing of nuclear missiles in
Tibet. Here, the great strategic importance of the country becomes
evident as well: missiles stationed in Tibet can easily reach important
population centers on the Indian subcontinent, and also far into Central
Asia.
However, needless to say, most important of all are the abuses committed
against the population of the country. Recurrent reports tell of forced
abortions in Tibetan women so as to reduce the Tibetan part of the
population, at the same time as the influx of Han Chinese is encouraged
in all possible ways (in the capital of Lhasa, the Tibetans are now a
minority); of the systematic wiping out of the Tibetan culture so as to
assimilate the Tibetans with the Han Chinese; of how the two religious
traditions of the country - Buddhism and Bon, the latter being very
little known outside the ranks of specialists - have been persecuted
with a particular frenzy since in the eyes of the Chinese, these are the
root of all backwardness and superstition which, according to them, was
prevalent in Tibet until they marched into the country - "the peaceful
liberation", according to Chinese historiography. So, what kind of
society was Tibet before this happened?
Concepts such as "feudal society" and "theocracy" have often been used
about the old Tibet, and certainly the large monasteries was the most
important factor of power in the ocuntry. The tax pressure seems to have
been high. A long-lasting policy of isolation, caused by fear of the
European colonial powers who were in control of the neighboring
countries, made Tibet loose contact with the development in the rest of
the world, what hit back on the Tibetans when China invaded in 1951, and
the Tibetans had to seek help in a modern world, difficult for them to
understand. However, up to the end, Tibet was a living civilization,
seeing herself as taking care of and upholding a tradition of
inestimable value - Mahayana Buddhism that was brought to the country
from India during our Middle Age.
The debate on Tibet is still dominated by strongly polarized views and
simplifications. Those taking part do most often function as mouthpieces
for one or another side in the conflict - either for Beijing or for the
exiled Tibetan government of the Dalai Lama based in Dharamsala in
Northern India.
VERY FEW have gone to the source material accessible; knowledge of
Chinese and Tibetan have not been strikingly impressive, and solid
knowledge of the distinct character of the Tibetan civilization, as well
as the changes and motives behind the policy of the Chinese Communist
Party, have often been missing,
Therefore, when "The Dragon in the Land of Snows. A History of Modern
Tibet Since 1947" by Tsering Shakya, Tibetan historian, is now
published, this book fills a long-felt need and will certainly be the
standard work on the subject for a long time ahead.
His work is free from the usual political mythology and is characterized
by a much-needed and matter-of-fact objectivity, together with a solid
and wide-ranging knowledge of his subject. Among other things, he has
had the opportunity to study unpublished reports by several central
Tibetan figures about the developments in the 1950:s. Due to the
delicate nature of the Tibetan issue, however, much material in British,
American and Indian archives remain inaccessible to scientists.
After the victory over Koumintang, the People's Liberation Army turned
West in 1951 to return Tibet to the "Motherland". Tibet was totally
unable to defend herself. Because of the long-lasting policy of
isolation, pursued by the great monasteries in particular, the army was
old-fashioned and seriously neglected.
The means of diplomacy was virtually unknown to the Tibetans. The status
of Tibet was unclear to the surrounding world. Consequently, no serious
protests were raised when China annexed the country. The silence of the
Western powers was probably also due to the fact that in the 1950:s,
they were still colonial powers. China could then easily have discarded
protests from them as double standard of morality.
WHEN CHINA and India had later signed the Panch-Sheela agreement in
1954, where India accepted that Tibet was a part of China, the Chinese
could set about the work undisturbed. They saw themselves as apostles of
modernization in a backward country that was lingering in medieval
darkness. This attitude was enhanced by the traditional master race
attitude of the Han Chinese toward non-Chinese nationalities. To this
was added a theoretical super-structure of "half-digested" and
vulgarized Marxist ideas about the course of the development of the
society The Tibetans themselves were never asked. The combination of all
this led to the greatest catastrophe in the history of Tibet.
Imposed land reforms, the introduction of people's communes and the
abolition of the privileges of the monasteries led to an armed rebellion
in Eastern Tibet from the middle of the 1950:s. There are no certain
figures, but the victims of the fights could be counted in ten thousands
on both sides. Gradually, as a part off the US policy of destabilizing
China, the CIA came to support the rebellion through shipments of arms
and training of Tibetan guerrillas at US military bases.
Until now, this bloody chapter of Tibetan history has hardly been known.
According to the author, this is mostly because of the unwillingness of
the Tibetan government in exile to put forth the events, since this
might tarnish the picture of Tibetans as a "peaceful" and "spiritual"
people, which they convey to the world.
The rebellion gradually spread and reached the capital of Lhasa,
reaching its climax in March 1959 with the Dalai Lama's dramatic escape
to India. After crushing the uprising, the Chinese set about their work
with still more energy to reshape the Tibetan society. Massive
re-education campaigns were initiated. The Tibetan language was
refashioned by introducing a new Marxist terminology, nay, even changes
in grammar were made.
Catastrophic attempts were made to replace the traditional grain of
barley with wheat - but wheat does not stand the extreme climate on the
Tibetan high plateau! The Tibetan identity was eradicated in all
spheres. Efforts were made to assimilate the population, in the same way
as had been successfully done with the Manchus and the population of
Inner Mongolia.
A new, and still more intense attack on all things Tibetan came during
the Cultural Revolution, a period so ghastly that in Tibet, it is
referred to as "when the sky fell down on earth". After it ended, there
were only thirteen monasteries left in Central Tibet - before the
arrival of the Chinese there were 2700(!). Now, too, an armed Tibetan
rebellion started - the so-called Nyemo rebellion, obviously a kind of
thousand-year movement which was quickly and brutally crushed.
AFTER MAO'S DEATH and Deng Xiaoping coming to power, there was a "thaw
period" for Tibet as well as in China as a whole. A "retibetanization"
of Tibet took place in all speheres, and monasteries popped up like
mushrooms after rain. During the new economic policy, Tibet came to be
regarded as a supplier of raw material for the economic development of
China.
In the region there are huge forests and rich mineral resources -
chromium, lithium, copper, gold etc. The region was opened for commerce,
which meant a strongly increasing influx of Han Chinese. Many of them
settled down permanently in Tibet, which rapidly led to ethnic conflict.
The "thaw period" made it possible for the Tibetan dissatisfaction to
come to surface, and violent demonstrations, often led by monks and
nuns, shook Lhasa repeatedly during the period of 1987-1990, when
martial law was proclaimed in the capital. Since then, the hard line
towards Tibet has been prevalent.
At times, since the Dalai Lama's exile in 1959, exploring talks have
been going on between the Tibetan government in exile and Beijing. Since
this dialogue seemed to have ceased completely in the late 1980:s, the
government in exile chose instead to internationalize the Tibetan issue
by appealing to the international opinion. There, indeed, progress has
been made.
Issues such as human rights, environment and ecology, the rights and
threatened cultural heritage of indigenous peoples have given rise to
popular commitment in the West during the recent decades - questions
which are only all too urgent in the case of Tibet. In short, the
Tibetan issue is a characteristic part of our age.
On the level of popular commitment, the Tibetan community in exile has
succeeded in gaining extensive support around the world. On the
political level, however, the situation is altogether different. The
interest and commitment for Tibet in the West does not present any
larger problems to China, because the Chinese are aware of the fact that
the West does not have any strategic or economical interests in Tibet.
Issues such as human rights can be used by Western politicians to hit
China (and also to catch votes among domestic voters) but does not mean
much in the sphere of realpolitik.
In conclusion, Tsering Shakya notes that the future destiny of Tibet
seems to be dependent on the development in China, above on what is
happening in the governing party of the country.
Rolf Jonsson
archivist and linguist
Tsering Shakya
The Dragon in the Land of Snows.
A History of Modern Tibet Since 1947
PIMLICO
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9. ETHICS SHOULD GROW OUT OF COMMON SENSE
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DALAI LAMA, Svenska Dagbladet, Sweden, February 27, 2000
Common guidelines. New ethical issues put forward by gene technology -
this has been the main theme on our page, "Heart & Soul" for the last
weeks. But the entire mankind is facing the need of common guidelines,
says the Dalai Lama in a book on global ethics. And there, he is not
advocating any specific religion as a basis for these guidelines. Man
can still be ethical, claims the Dalai Lama, who is expected to Sweden
in May.
Mankind needs common ethics. But this can not be based on political
ideas, or economical visions and, above all, it can not be built on
philosophical speculations or a religious minimum acceptable standard.
No, global ethics should grow out of common sense and everyday logics,
which can be perceived and tested by everybody.
This is what one of the maybe most influential religious leaders in the
world, the Dalai Lama, is explaining in his book, "Ethics for the New
Millennium", which is to be published by Egmont Richter's publishing
company soon before the Dalai Lama's visit to Sweden in May.
According to the Dalai Lama, new global ethics can not be formed around
moral rules or intellectual speculations as to what is good and evil,
right and wrong. Such rules are impossible to set up. What is right in
one situation might be wrong on another occasion. What is good in the
life of one human being leads to negative consequences in the life of
someone else.
Therefore, ethics must be based on a few, self-evident truths with
immediate consequences for our daily life.
Although the Dalai Lama writes that his ideas are not an attempt to
spread Buddhist ethics, many of the basic concepts in Buddhism can be
traced in his way of reasoning. This it not strange when considering his
life and fate. But his goal is not to missionize. What he presents is a
"spiritual reorientation" - not a "new religious revolution".
-It is even doubtful if religion is the best starting point for the
creation of new ethics today, writes he.
Increasing numbers of the citizens of the world choose to live without
any close ties to religion, an so, new ethics must be created from other
premises. Moreover, writes he, it is obvious that you do not need to be
religious in order to lead a good and ethical life. Just as religion is
no vaccination against evil.
Neither does the Dalai Lama advocate idealism. Trying to convince the
rich that they have to share with the poor because it is morally right
does not lead to any long-term changes, according to his view.
The same applies to rules. Of course, we human beings can certainly
agree on a few common humanistic commandments which should be followed,
and he gives examples from Buddhist ones: You should not kill, you
should not lie, you should not steal, you should not assuage yourself
with drugs, and you should lead a responsible sexual life. But this is
not enough either. Taken by themselves, rules given to people from
outside could make them abstain from certain actions, but ethics is much
more than that.
Nevertheless we have to try to agree on some guidelines, says the Dalai
Lama. We can no longer live in the notion of being separate and
autonomous individuals. We are inseparably connected. What one human
being does on his/her spot on earth affects by necessity the life and
possibilities of all others.
And here is the starting point of the Dalai Lama's attempt to create
global ethics.
Human beings, writes he, have two things in common (and here, those
readers familiar with Buddhism can recognize what Buddha postulated 2600
years ago) - they want to avoid suffering and they are striving for
happiness. And to be happy, says the Dalai Lama, is a human right.
The problem is only that the attempts of one individual to exercise
his/her rights are running the risk of limiting those of others. My
happiness becomes other people's unhappiness. My path away from my own
suffering is causing suffering to others. And this, in the long run,
will affect my own possibilities to reach happiness.
From this point of view, being ethical in relation to others is the only
way to reach one's own happiness.
The Dalai Lama tries to prove, with examples out of everyday life,
science, and in a global perspective, that this is true.
Man feels good when doing well - this is the Dalai Lama's simple
presumption. That's the way man is constructed. Good actions not only
put you in a good mood, they also induce the formation of good, healing
hormones and useful chemical reactions in the body. Aggression and
suspicion will poison and destroy the ill tempered, mentally and
physically.
Globally and ecologically it is impossible to poison the Earth without
an impact on all of us. A destructive policy will always destroy its
creator in the long run.
According the Dalai Lama's definition, this means that good ethics
consists in striving for your own physical and mental happiness without
limiting the possibilities of any other human being(or, in Buddhist
perspective, sentient being) to do the same.
But to do so, one must understand what gives lasting happiness to a
human being, and also develop one's ability to enter into other
people's situations and to assess one's own actions in relation to the
consequences for other people. You must, writes the Dalai Lama, think,
think, think.
The fact that man is happier when his fundamental needs are satisfied,
writes the Dalai Lama, is beyond all doubt. But equally obvious is the
fact that material resources exceeding this basic level do not
automatically increase the satisfaction. It almost seems, writes he, to
be the other way around.
The self-hatred he has seen in Europe and the US, he has never seen
elsewhere. Not even the hardships that the exiled Tibetans went through,
made them try to solve their problems by hurting themselves. On the
contrary, he is surprised over how much joy there is in the shattered
exile Tibetan community.
From this, says the Dalai Lama, the conclusion can be drawn that man's
attitude to what he sees and experiences, is what determines the way he
looks upon his own situation and his ability to create happiness for
himself and for others. What make us rich is our inner resources.
In order to achieve a new attitude and thus be able to lead an ethically
good life, one should, according to the Dalai Lama, realize some
fundamental facts as well as practise what the Tibetans term "lo"
(consciousness, feeling, and emotions) and "kun-long" (motivation).
Firstly, it is a matter of realizing the complexity of life and the
interdependence of everything. Forget all simple answers, exhorts the
Dalai Lama. In human relations there is nothing like black and white.
Life is infinitely complex. The only possible approach is humbleness.
Also, do not believe that you are a satellite with definite borders. An
arm is not a human being, neither is the brain or the heart. Nothing of
what man is, defines him.
The same applies to man's position in society. What is a mother without
children, a boss without employees, a rich man without the poor. Man, as
well as everything else existing, is only in relation to something else.
Actually, writes the Dalai Lama, nothing exists but relations.
From this way of looking upon reality, one can then try to reduce one's
angry, automatic defense reactions. If everything is connected and
complex, it is not as easy to get angry with the merest trifle. In the
same way it is easier to feel compassion and love towards those around
you when seeing how similar we all are, and how much we depend on each
other.
Here, religions can also be of use, says the Dalai Lama. For thousands
of years they have developed techniques with the purpose of increasing
compassion in man.
But, frankly speaking, Mr. Dalai Lama - look around! Is man really an
ethical being?
Yes, absolutely, claims the man who was driven out of his own country.
The capacity to love is inborn and deeply rooted. It starts as soon as
the child is born, maybe even earlier. The newborn is directly seeking
contact with his mother, and his mother gives willingly of her love as
well as her body. This is the basis, and it is universal, writes he in
his book. Because in spite of hardship, most people are daily striving
to get and to give love. It is clearly seen in man's universal loathing
for war and violence.
But certainly, all of us do also have the capacity of becoming
murderers. Nevertheless, people like Hitler, Mao and Stalin are still
exceptions, fruits of a specific historical situation. The normal thing
is mankind's not-discussed everyday actions of love towards each other.
And should a person, due to various circumstances, be unable to strive
for good actions, the Dalai Lama offers a light-version of his global
ethics:
- Try at least to avoid doing harm.
Ann Lagerström
ann.lagerstrom@svd.se
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