They had waited for him since dawn, sun-drenched along an uneven mountain road. But when the Dalai Lama’s motorcade swept by, his passing wave left many vaguely disenchanted. Officials had warned that he would not be stopping; nevertheless, disappointment is hard to accept from a man many consider a god. Now, as the 68-year-old Dalai Lama engages in talks with the… return to article
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Reader Comments (6)Page 1 of 1 pagesI found this story insightful, provocative—and sad. If this can happen to Tibet, after 1,000 years of practicing the Buddha way, what does that say about the prospects for the rest of the nations? Non-violence seems to have worked for Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr, but what about Tibet? It remains to be seen. I pray that it does. But sometimes, it seems prayer needs gunpowder to be truly effectual. I hope this is not the case with Tibet and China.
Thomas Ressler
http://www.dharmadc.org
Posted by Thomas Ressler on Dec 1, 2003 at 9:40 PM Chinaís present claim to Tibet is based entirely on the influence that Mongol and Manchu emperors exercised over Tibet in the thirteenth and eighteenth centuries, respectively. From a legal standpoint, Tibet has this day not lost its statehood. It is an independent state under illegal occupation.
We might compare the Taiwan issue to Tibet. It is clear that from history, Taiwan is not historically a part of China. No Han Chinese administration was ever extended to the island prior to the twentieth century. The only “Chinese” administration on the island was that of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, a foreign people who conquered China in 1644.
Chinese policy towards these two regions is simply that of the preponderance of a horde of locusts. In these postmodern times no institutional resistance to such a policy is to be expected. However the Chinese Communist regime is so riddled with corruption, and its banking system is so unstable, that we may yet see Taiwan rule the mainland, and even a free Tibet—who knows?
AA
Posted by Alex Ashley on Dec 2, 2003 at 4:29 AM The political ecology of realpolitik’s heedless pursuit of power has shown itself to be bankrupt. The genius of compassionate non-violence has yet to be tried. It works in solving individual and community problems. With the tidal wave of technological change and ubiquity of access to knowledge the 21st century needn’t repeat the vain-glories of the colonial, rapacious robber-baron natural resource stripping past. When politics gets back to seeing its raison d’etre in the village, regional devolution of power will gain profound strength from practiced non-violent justice in compassion.
Posted by Paul L. Johnson on Dec 2, 2003 at 6:30 PM Wow. This is a great article. It scares me to see Tibetans getting outnumbered. I’m a buddhist myself, and I look up the culture of tibet a lot.
I disagree with Phuntsok. I don’t think now is the time for violent activity, there will be a backlash of other nations. The opinion the communist china is unstable is untrue, the people are very loyal to the government. What would be best to destabilize them is spread the word, especially the atrocities the chinese government commits.-Sam Lidester
http://scribbler.bravehost.com
Posted by Sam Lidester on Dec 3, 2003 at 2:00 AM Things aren’t so wonderful in Tibet right now, but the longer view is very positive. The Tibetan religion is so beautiful and powerful all who are exposed to it learn to admire it and some even practice it. By exposing so many the Chinese, the government is hastening its spread. Many Chinese tell of the magical pull Tibet has on the rest of the country. China wishes to stamp out Tibetan religion but the unintended consequence is that Tibetan religion will conquer official communist atheism in the end.
Posted by james from DC on Dec 13, 2003 at 9:06 PM I cannot forget the last time I saw His Holiness in New York. He seemed tired, a bit dazed, and perhaps sad. When asked about Tibetan independence, he said he was only asking for genuine autonomy, and that we should take all independence related questions “to the youth organizations.” I had a distinct feeling that he was consciously stepping out of the political frontseat and handing the reigns over to the youth. China may believe they have won the war, and continue to play the waiting game. But the truth is, the war has not started; it is right around the corner. His Holiness is the only effective voice preventing Tibetans from resorting to violence. In his absence, the Tibetan issue will rise in all possible ugly forms. Because we Tibetans are not the peace loving creatures we have been portrayed to be; we are ordinary, meat-eating, and angry, angry human beings.
Posted by Tenzin Dorjee on Jan 7, 2004 at 4:40 PM Page 1 of 1 pages -
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