UK SFT ISSUE 7
NEWS
Spring 2013
Same old China? www.sftuk.org
Will Xi Jinping learn from China’s policy failures in Tibet?
Students for a Free Tibet UK, Unit 9, 139 Fonthill Road, Finsbury Park, London N4 3HF Non-profit organisation number 08107379
SFT UK news
SFTUK 7
Dear Tibetans and supporters,
It’s a time of changing leadership, both for Tibet, where Tibetans inside are setting the agenda, laying down their lives for their country, and for China, where Xi Jinping has replaced Hu Jintao. But there are big differences between us and our opponents.
Contents News 3-9
-Self-immolations -China protests -Border rows -CCP journalism -More news
The first is that they’re much more poweful than us. But though China is powerful, the Chinese Communist Party is incredibly chaotic and prone to bitter infighting which could destabilise it and the country at any time. Even Xi Jinping isn’t immune from this, and when he disappeared for over a week just before the CCP began transferring power to him last year, we saw how fractured our opponent really is. Meanwhile, we’re seeing many thousands of Tibetans gather to pay their respects to those who self-immolate in protest against Chinese rule, risking their own lives despite the CCP imposing more and more desperate measures to deter them. This spirit of unity is heard in Tibetan songs and called for by protesters and poets alike. China may be powerful, but in over 60 years, it hasn’t silenced Tibet.
10-11 China is big; that’s true as well, but it’s also clumsy. Its policies in Tibet are old Get active!
-Uprising Day -Multi-lateralism -More stories
-13 Feature 12 -Hu vs XI: Report cards for the two Chinese Presidents
fashioned and ineffective, and its attitude to the rest of the world is starting to irritate its trading partners. We live in the 21st centuary, where people express themselves, organise and commicate through social media. People don’t want to be told what to do and what to think by powerful elites anymore; the global society is more diverse than that. So when people like China’s Jia Qinling talk about their priorities being ‘more efforts to fight the Dalai Lama clique in order to ensure the regions' lasting stability’, we recognise that China is locked in a vicious circle with Tibet just as it is with its own people over Falun Gong, Tiananmen and internet censorship; cracking down on everything it disagrees with is a strategy which will only breed dissent.
14-17 Campaigns And China is rich, but it’s also corrupt. The rift between rich and poor in China is
-Nomad protests -Arrests continue -More stories
unsustainable, but China’s elite aren’t trying to heal it. Like Wen Jiabao, exposed recently for pocketing huge amounts of state money for his family, the rich are getting richer, but you don’t need to be rich to oppose an oppressive regime. In fact 18-19 it’s more likely people will oppose it when they can no longer feed their own families, Online and that’s what’s happening across China as its economic growth starts to slow. On -Losing grip? the other hand, there are Tibetans from all walks of life, all ages and all regions who -Hacks exposed are seeing their nation’s riches stripped away by the Chinese state’s destructive -More stories mining and other ‘developments’, from which Tibetans don’t benefit. China is only 20-21 rich because of the resources it’s plundered; it doesn’t own those riches.
Grassroots
-Edinburgh -Tenzin Tsundue -More stories
22-23 Regulars -Prisoner focus: Lama Jigme -Notice board
Cover: Troops fill Lhasa as China has kept Tibet under lockdown over the last year, while Xi Jinping has gradually assumed power.
The SFT UK team
But the biggest difference between us and our opponent is the ability to change. People say ‘same old China’, and as Xi Jinping slithers into power, there’s little to make anyone believe he will go in a new direction. Tibet will have been one of the topics of discussion at the National Congress of the CCP in November and it’ll be one of his main challenges. Tibet still represents what China fears; freedom, identity, opposition. Yet China is too rigid to switch to an appoach which will will actually bring the stability it craves, while Tibetans are being more and more inventive. We have passion, unity and the truth on our side. Tibetans inside Tibet are reminding us of these strengths every day and as Kirti Rinpoche said when he was in the UK in March, “you don't need to wait for everyone to gather together to take an action, it's every single Tibetan's duty to fight for Tibet at all times.” That’s the spirit which will finally break China’s hold on Tibet. -Pema Dolma, Director, SFT UK
Photos: Pema at the unveiling of the Proclamation of Independence on 13th February, Sonam silences ‘Xi’ at the Uprising Day rally SFT UK: Pema (Director), Gabriel, Fenya, Sonam, Tsephel, Dolly, Yusra, Penpa, Amie
Self-immolations exceed 100
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Self-immolation has become synonymous with the Tibetan struggle; a symbol of the depth of feeling against China’s rule in the same way as images of burning monks became symbolic of the Vietnam war. And self-immolation has become a topic of discussion among Tibetans, politicians, supporters, Han citizens and decision makers in Beijing. Self-immolation has prompted debate about the key issues which characterise the Tibetan movement; non-violence, independence, anonymity, empowerment, cultural identity, on who is leading this movement and how we can best support them. But despite China’s propaganda drive to vilify those who self-immolate, one thing which people agree on, from Tibetans inside to exiles, to the general public and world leaders, is that the situation which has caused this crisis has been created by China’s failed policies in Tibet. And whatever else it’s done, self-immolation has got the Chinese state rattled.
Every tragic case means that another Tibetan, whether young or old, male or female, monk, nun, student or nomad, has laid down their life for their country. And though the western world is dragging its feet when it comes to supporting Tibet, self-immolation is driving home a message to Tibetans around the world; that Tibetans inside have had enough of Chinese rule, and even if it doesn’t act, the rest of the world certainly acknowledges it. As the number of self-immolations reached the normally auspicious number of 108 this March, the US again criticised Chinese policies as it labeled Tibet one of the most repressed places in the world. Governments from the UK to Japan, the EU to Australia have cited their dismay at the selfimmolations, with only China desperately clinging to notion that these cases are defined by depressed or ‘criminal’ individuals who have been misled by the external forces of the ‘Dalai clique’ to waste their lives in this way. Nobody is buying this propaganda, and with every case the Chinese state is shamed; forced to watch it’s buzz word of ‘harmonious’ Tibet fade into farce with every strike of the match.
Terrible landmarks were reached when 17-year-old Lobsang Damchoe and 18-year-old Lobsang Kalsang became the 49th and 50th cases on 27th August and Kirti monk Lobsang Namgyal became the 100th confirmed case on 3rd February. But the humanity of every case continues to both shock and inspire the Tibetan people, who still turn out in huge numbers to show their respects to these martyrs while China scrabbles to arrest and intimidate family members, mourners, people sharing photos; anyone vaguely connected to these incidents. China is grappling to contain an opponent much more elusive than the ‘terrorists’ which it hopes the rest of the world will begin to equate with self-immolators; the spectre of Tibetan identity and resistance, which China has tried and failed to defeat for over 60 years. Every case paints a personal picture; November saw a spike in self-immolations around the Chinese Communist Party’s Congress; five Tibetans, including a young mother and three teenage boys the largest number of self-immolations in a single day, triggering massive demonstrations. Monks Dorje, 15, Samdrub, 16, and Dorje Kyab, 16, set themselves ablaze in front of a police station in Ngaba town, calling for a free Tibet and the return of the Dalai Lama. The writer Gudrub, who also self-immolated, left a message saying “we must distinguish and give prominence to our pride in ourselves as a people and even in the face of loss and suffering, must never lose our courage and spirit in our endeavour to uphold our unity.” There have been attempted self-immolations and cases which have taken a long time to verify, such as that of Tulku Athup and his neice Atse, a case where 62-year-old Passang Lhamo travelled to Beijing to self-immolate against Chinese land grabs in post-quake Jyekundo and in Driru, Nagchu when Chinese police stopped seven from self-immolating; chasing them to a river where five refused to be taken into custody and instead jumped to their deaths. And there have been tests for the CCP-influenced Nepalese government over the return of the body of self-immolator Drupchen Tsering. Student Tsering Kyi summed up Tibetan feeling before her selfimmolation; “We should do something for Tibet; life is meaningless if we don’t do anything for Tibet.”
Continuing the state policy of blaming the incidents on the Dalai Lama, China’s new leader Xi Jinping has vowed to ‘smash the Dalai clique’ while CCP representative Zhang Dongsheng said “our struggle against the Dalai Lama is long-term and intense. We cannot relax at any moment.” But the state’s hard-line view has yet to yield any concrete results, with Tibetans’ feeling of identity stronger than ever. The Dalai Lama himself has said the self-immolators have acted in ‘Tibet’s national interest’ and underlined that China has created this situation. Though the frequency rises and falls depending on opportunities to make a political point, the incidents continue. Nobody wants to see more, but it must be dawning on the CCP that as long as it rules Tibet with an iron fist, these incidents will keep embarrassing them, will keep inspiring Tibetans to stand up and resist and will keep exposing China and Tibet for what they are; occupier and occupied playing out the same way occupations by every repressive empire in history have played out; invasion, oppression, resistance, liberation. Each self-immolation stands as a dramatic exclamation point to the rich diversity of resistance in Tibet today, leaving no doubt that we’re now firmly in phase three of China’s occupation of Tibet. PHOTOS: Kalsang Jinpa (18), Wenchen Kyi (17), Sangay Dolma (18), Tsering Tashi (22), Gudrub (41), Tamding Tso (23), Tamdring Kyab (23), Tenzin Dolma (23), Dorjee (15), Kalsang Kyi (30). Keep up to date at www.standupfortibet.org
Unearthing bones
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China’s atrocities in Tibet are clear for the world to see, but every time we hear of a shooting, a selfimmolation or a victim of torture, we have to wonder how many such cases we don’t see. China invests huge resources in covering up the truth, so we probably only ever see the tip of the iceberg.
This fact was brought to the fore in shocking fashion in 2012 in Yushu, where a large discovery of human bones was unearthed during a building project. Elsewhere, three mass burial pits were found as building work took place for a housing project in the grasslands; another reminder of the stark realities of China’s human rights crimes against the Tibetan people. Both discoveries are thought to date back to 1958; the first being the remnants of a massacre of monks resisting Chinese rule and the latter a mixture of bodies of more killed in 1958 and laypeople who died of famine after China cemented its control in 1959. The Chinese state was quick to remove the evidence.
When we see such evidence, we give the actions behind them many names; massacre, mass murder, genocide. China has been careful to hide what really happens in Tibet, and it’s only through the bravery of Tibetans risking their lives to share information that we receive any news of what goes on today. Massacres are particularly hard to evidence, even if simply because the tactic is to not let anyone survive to tell the tale. So scholars have always speculated about exactly how many Tibetans China has killed over 60 years of occupation. Some have said 1.2 million; around a sixth of the population. This is an unverifiable figure and may well have been exaggerated, but only because China refuses to provide the true numbers. As we often find with China, what they are hiding turns out to be a lot worse than what they choose to reveal.
Trafficking Tibetans
Human trafficking is a problem seen the world over, and this is no different in Tibet. Reports of the trafficking of Tibetan women and children to Chinese provinces jumped from 12 in 2010 to 37 in 2011, with each report covering numerous people. Seventy traffickers have been arrested since 2008, but incidents seem to have dropped off in 2012, with only four reports. Those who have been trafficked are generally used as ‘brides’ for wealthy Chinese or as house servants; a practice which is illegal under Chinese as well as international law. In some cases, victims were given false job offers or were fooled into thinking their abductors were genuine potential partners. Some women were drugged in their homes and sold into servitude, most came from rural Tibetan backgrounds, and some had ended up in brothels after being held as slaves. 85 people were reported to have been found and taken home by Chinese police, but though the US State Department commented that China is making progress on the issue, it stated that it still “does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.”
Weiwei: ‘no way’ to visiting Lhasa
Always prepared to anger the Chinese authorities, Chinese artist Ai Weiwei has issued criticism of China’s policies in Tibet. He said in August that he would feel ashamed going to Lhasa because despite Tibetans burning themselves to death, China is not addressing the issues. He said to truly respect the Tibetan people, the Chinese state must leave them alone. He added "It's not just Beijing. It's a problem of the system, which could be more efficient, more loving, friendlier to people. Even if you're not elected. But that's very naive. That's why you need democracy. Either you're elected or you have to leave, because otherwise you're a monster."
Scarier than Halloween
A woman in Oregon, USA was surprised to find an extra component in a box of Halloween decorations she bought from a local supermarket; a hand-scrawled letter from an inmate at a Chinese work camp, appealing for help. In intermittent English and Chinese, the note read “if you occasionally buy this product, please kindly resend this letter to the World Human Rights Organisation. Thousands of people here who are under the persecution of the Chinese Communist Party Government will thank and remember you forever.” The note went on to say that inmates worked 15 hour days and that they had been imprisoned without trial for 1-3 years. It stated most were simply there for being Falun Gong practitioners, and that these were punished more harshly than the others. The note was written on headed paper from the Masanjia labour camp.
Abuse at the camp has been reported before by Falun Gong practitioners who were imprisoned there. One, Zhao Suhuan, said she was force fed drugs at the camp, attacked for hours on end with electric batons and sadistically beaten in an attempt to make her denounce her faith. Another, Pan Qi, said she had been forced to make similar decorations, confirming inmates got “hardly any rest and the next day you have to work again. Many people were driven mad. Some couldn’t finish the quotas, and they were locked up in a small room.” Though we buy goods from China all the time, it’s disturbing to think how they are actually made, but even innocent looking throwaway toys could be costing people their lives and their sanity, simply because their beliefs differ from those of the Chinese Communist Party. PHOTOS: Unearthing bones of Tibetans killed by the Chinese state, the plastic gravestone decorations and the note found inside.
China tries to silence Uyghurs
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China has sentenced 20 Uyghur dissidents to lengthy terms, including life, for ‘terrorism’ and ‘inciting secession’. China accuses them of planning to assasinate officials, but Uyghur spokespeople say they are only guilty of listening to foreign news reports and sending video of Chinese crackdowns to journalists. It comes at a time where China is reacting to growing unrest in East Turkistan. Patigul Ghulum, a widow whose son went missing, said she was bundled into her home by a number of Chinese police as she left to buy groceries, telling her she would have to stay there until September’s China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi ended. Her son was one of many Uyghurs who disappeared during violent clashes which left 200 dead in 2009; missing for nine months until it transpired he had been tortured during detention and taken to hospital. "They blocked my way as I reached to the door to go out” she said, “they said, 'you cannot go outside.’ I insisted I go out and do shopping but they said they’d buy it for me. Suddenly, they used physical force and pushed me into my home, and when I stood my ground, my hand was injured... I am not the guilty party, I am a victim who lost my son… If I am guilty, then take me to your detention center, hold me there until everything is exposed instead of making my house a detention center for me.” A dozen police are guarding her home. Meanwhile, rights groups used the Urumqi Expo to highlight the rights abuses of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation; a partnership of China, Russia and Central Asian countries, which has been using the excuse of ‘terrorism’ to subject ordinary Uyghurs to discrimination, abuse of freedoms and torture. And China is seeking to silence Uyghurs in other ways; forced disappearance could soon the legalised in China (though it would still be illegal under international law) through an amendment to China’s Criminal Procedure Law, allowing arbitrary house arrest. China has not ratified the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance, despite the UN adopting it in 2006.
Granpa of the people?
Outgoing Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao made an appearance in 2010 quake-hit Jyekundo in December as part of his drive to cement his legacy as a caring leader. Analyst Zhang Lifan said of his trip, "Wen has not accomplished much through his economic policies and calls for political reform because he is restricted inside the Party. Boosting his populist image seems to be the only thing he can do to make himself known." Wen also subtly criticised monastic resistance, saying “a monastery should be a clean and pure place where clergy abide by religious commandments and build a positive social image." But politics isn’t only about image, it’s about action. In contrast to Granpa Wen’s ‘caring’ persona, China has harassed activists seeking help for the families of tens of thousands of children killed in sub-standard state schools in the disaster, given housing precedence to Chinese immigrants over displaced Tibetans and demolished Tibetans’ homes while state corruption is rampant. With Wen’s family also exposed for skimming off cash, he kept quiet over that issue.
China faces fresh protests
Chinese protesters secured a victory against the state in October when they clashed with police in Ningbo, Zhejiang province over plans to expand a petro-chemical plant. The state backed down under the pressure, canceling the project. Typically, the Chinese state owns such plants, and Chinese protesters made it clear they had no trust in the government, fearing the environmental damage which takes places across Chinese-ruled territory. Such protests are growing as the increasingly savvy middle classes witness environmental damage caused to secure the industrial economic development which forms the backbone of state power. In Shifang, Sichuan mid last year, Chinese activists called on citizens to ‘take a stroll’ as a form of protest against government plans to build a huge copper plant. Using this method helped citizens who would normally back away from public protest to express their opinions, while some 10,000 formed a traditional protest, chanting slogans while some invaded Party offices, prompting police to run riot on the crowd using tear gas, flash grenades and batons. But protesters refused to back down and the regime shelved the project. Tibetan students protesting for language rights can take heart from the victories of Hong Kong protesters too. In early September, China’s government in Hong Kong backed down when tens of thousands protested against proposals to introduce the Chinese curriculum in 2015, describing it as an attempt to ‘brainwash’ students on the island, where information access is not limited to Chinese state propaganda. Though Hong Kong elects half of its governors, CCP-backed leader Leung Chun-Ying has been criticised over education, property prices and the influx of mainland Chinese immigrants.
PHOTOS from top: Chinese troops patrol East Turkistan, TYAE’s Migmar and SFT UK’s Pema with Uyghur leader Rebiya Kadeer, Wen in Jyekundo, Chinese clashes and protest in Shifang, huge crowds in HK
People’s Daily editor suicide
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The People’s Daily, one of the official mouthpieces of the CCP, isn’t exactly known as a paragon of free thought, but that doesn’t mean its staff are blind to the nature of the propaganda the paper produces. Xu Huaiqian, one of the paper’s senior editors, couldn’t take any more on 22nd August and leapt to his death, leaving a telling suicide message. In a last interview, he said “my pain is I dare to think, but I don't dare to speak out; if I dare to speak out, I don't dare to write it down, and if I dare to write it down, there is no place to publish. I admire those freelance writers, but I can't leave the system because if I do that my family will suffer." It’s likely his feelings represent those of many Chinese people who are disgruntled but too fearful of the Chinese state to oppose it. And a eulogy for him summed up the feeling; "people are the editors of a country. People only have their lives to publish. Their life is their article, and their death is the payment. Your sad end to life is like an unpublished script."
In another incident in January, staff and journalists at another Chinese paper, the Southern Weekly, protested for the local state propaganda chief to resign for being ‘dictatorial’ after he demanded that an editorial be changed to a tribute to the Chinese Communist Party. This was a week after a blog staff were participating in which called for political reform in China was shut down. Support for the Southern Weekly is growing, with continuing protests, while the state is also attempting to punish foreign news agencies which report Chinese corruption by denying their correspondants visas to work in China. Al Jazeera’s Melissa Chan’s visa was denied after she reported on detention centres while New York Times’ Chris Buckley was deported after the paper’s site was blocked over reports on corruption and a Bloomberg journalist was also denied a visa.
Journalism... but not as we known it
China’s main news agency, Xinhua, has also come under fire. Constantly expanding into an international network, employees overseas have been puzzled by the company’s practice of reporters being asked to file stories not to the news service but direct to the Chinese government, effectively making journalists spies rather than reporters.
This was the situation faced by freelance reporter Mark Bourrie, who was attending an April talk by the Dalai Lama with his family. He received a call from the local boss of the Ottawa branch of Xinhua, asking him to file a report on the talk and also to ascertain what had happened in an earlier meeting between the Dalai Lama and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper. At first this didn’t seem strange; Bourrie had worked for Xinhua before, but asked the agency’s bureau chief whether they would actually publish a report on the Dalai Lama, to which he received the answer that they would not publish as His Holiness was ‘campaigning for the separation of Tibet from China’. This raised the obvious question; if they would never publish an article about a talk by the Dalai Lama, why did Xinhua want a journalist to go there and file a report? “They tried to get me to write a report for the Chinese government on the Dalai Lama using my press credentials as a way of getting access I wouldn’t otherwise have” said Mr. Bourrie, adding that Xinhua had staff who acted as spies, using press privileges to monitor Tibetans, Falun Gong practitioners and other Chinese government critics in Canada. Alarm bells had first rung for Mr. Bourrie when he had previously worked at Xinhua; his boss had asked him to find out the identities and addresses of those who protested during Hu Jintao’s arrival at the G20 Summit in Toronto in 2010, and he’d seen documents inside the agency refering to Falun Gong as ‘an evil cult’. When he withdrew from Xinhua and complained that he felt information was being sent to the CCP rather than being used for new stories, he received a response stating “any message released at news conference is news, and news is open to every one, including the government.” Chinese politics professor Charles Burton said Mr. Bourrie’s story “confirms everything we know about Xinhua. The function of the Xinhua news agency is to gather information for the Chinese regime.” And exiled reporter and critic Cao Changqing said “Xinhua News agency is the most powerful, most corrupt news agency in the world, because it uses the name of ‘news agency,’ but does things completely unrelated to news. In mainland China, Xinhua mainly conducts propaganda. The mouthpiece of the CCP, its job is to collect intelligence, this is widely known.” Meanwhile, The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of China joined criticisms of China’s treatment of the press, citing recent cases where foreign reporters have been beaten up and had equipment confiscated by authorities for attempting to file reports. In another case in March, a Sky reporter was granted permission to film in Tiananmen Square but mentioned the 1989 massacre and was detained then taken to a park. Authorities then told him he was not permitted to be in the park, allowing them to take his film; they hadn’t realised the broadcast was live. "We are particularly concerned that a number of these incidents have involved members of the official security forces and associated elements" said the FCCC. The incidents include the beating of a Japanese journalist covering a protest in July, an incident where a German crew was held captive by a mob for nine hours for attempting to report on pollution and the ongoing restrictions on access to Tibet.
PHOTOS: People’s Daily editor XuHuaiqian, protests against the state’s treatment of the Southern Weekly, Xinhua brings its propaganda to Times Square, New York, where they have secured a large advertising screen.
Tibetans occupy Serta building
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Tibetans in Labrang countered China’s ‘divide and rule’ tactics in a protest against the state. They were protesting against the failure of the Chinese authorties to solve a land dispute between people of villages in Amchock and Bora, who the state had left to argue between themselves, thereby damaging unity within the Tibetan community. But the regime didn’t expect the two towns to unite against the state, occupying the square in front of the main government building in the area. It was another example of the growing sense of unity in Tibet, and again the state struggled to find an answer to Tibetans linking up to oppose them.
Mural spooks China
China often cracks down on expressions of resistance inside the territory it controls, but one mural artist in the US angered the state so much that they demanded his work be censored on the other side of the world. Taiwanese-American businessman David Lin created the mural on a building at a busy intersection in the Oregon town of Corvallis, featuring images promoting Tibetan and Taiwanese independence, including that of a monk self-immolating. David Lin said "I feel that somebody has to stand up and do something." But the Chinese Consulate in San Francisco reacted by sending a letter to city leaders stating that authorities must take ‘effective measures’ to counter the mural and that “there is only one China in the world, and both Tibet and Taiwan are parts of China. It is a fact recognised by the US and most other countries in the world.” The town’s mayor Julie Manning responded that free speech laws ban the town from taking action, and that the city government would not get involved in the matter. Consulate officials then visited the town in person to meet her, but the mural remains.
Bad education
China continues its heavy-handed reaction to protests, as a man named Nyima, one of over a thousand anti-mining protesters in Markham, was shot dead. Students have also been on the front line in a big way; thousands mobilised in Rebkong in November, packing the streets as they protested for rights and the return of the Dalai Lama. All the schools in the district joined in, and this time Chinese forces gathered but didn’t open fire. In March, students in Gansu marked the anniversary of the start of the 2008 uprising and were intimidated and threatened. Students are becoming one of the most dynamic and fearless sections of Tibetan society, standing up for language rights, free speech and unity; a new generation of resistance.
China’s economy; a big cover-up?
China is known for cheap goods, pollution and economic strength. One of those has been put in doubt recently, and it isn’t something China would want publicised. The New York Times, already sceptical about China’s figures for economic growth, revealed an investigation suggesting China is manipulating data to hide the fact that its economy is finally hitting a downturn. China has appeared to have escaped the world economic crisis so far as its growth has been so swift it’s outstripped losses, but with economic growth being the Chinese Communist Party’s main claim for support both at home and abroad and state corruption rife, it comes as no surprise that China would cover up evidence that the economy has started to falter. One of the problems with ascertaining China’s growth is that everything, including big companies, are owned by the state, and reports have been questioned for years. In April, Radio Free Asia reported that state officials were demanding companies inflate production and profit results, while the New York Times added that they were also fudging figures on electricity production; traditionally a good indicator of what a country is actually generating and using. The paper also revealed huge stockpiles of coal in Hebei as evidence that power consumption is falling, suggesting people no longer have the means to use such volume. This is all in stark contrast to China’s national statistics, which claim electricity is up 5.2% and coal prices have fallen. The economic crisis is largely about speculation, and as the world’s second largest economy, incorrect speculation on China’s production could have wide ranging policy impacts just as speculation on US markets have had such an impact on ours. If China is lying about their figures and its economy is slowing down, it suddenly becomes a less attractive market for foreign investors, and China loses much of its leverage when negotiating. When China is caught out on inconsistencies in the figures, its approach is to blame individuals and make them scapegoats, but the truth is that the state itself stands to gain from manipulating the data so it’s likely they’d favour such a practice. You can never know with China, but if people are struggling to put food on their plates they may well end up taking it out on the powers that be.
PHOTOS: Tibetans occupy a square in Bora, David Lin and his mural, students placed butter lamps in front of a memorial to the start of the 2008 uprising on 14th March, large crowds protest in Rebkong, poverty is rife in China, but is the economy really slowing down?
China ‘bans’ self-immolation
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Fearful of the spread of self-immolations, China has set out rafts of measures to try to stop the incidents taking place, including flooding Tibet with troops, appointing teams of fire officers at monasteries, equipping troops with extinguishers and it’s favourite tactic; intimidation.
Tibetans from restive Amdo and Kham are being banned from travelling to Lhasa. A source said "the Chinese authorities and police are stricter on Tibetans from Amdo region. The natives are seen as thorns in their eyes." But the bans haven’t worked; there have indeed been self-immolations in Lhasa, while incidents have greatly increased in Eastern Tibet. Another tactic is arresting any Tibetan youth who gather in groups of three or four, as is offering bribes to those who share information about self-immolators. The state is also arresting friends and family members of those involved and listing items outlawed at festivals, including the materials used to self-immolate. Some lists expressly ‘ban’ self-immolation itself.
Authorities released an 11-point public notice before a horse racing festival in Machu in August, barring ‘flammable’ and ‘poisonous’ objects and warning ‘detention and prosecution’ to those who staged protests. It listed ‘self injury, suicide, self-immolation, beating, smashing and looting’ as examples of such activity. Notices urging ‘social stability’ and ‘national unity’ were also posted, while notices in Kanlho cited ‘participation in illegal organisations’ and ‘fabricating and disseminating rumours on social networking sites’ as things which ‘harm social stability’ and ‘endanger national security’. The Chinese state has also been removing satellite dishes and TV equipment from monasteries in Eastern Tibet, saying they want to stop monks seeing ‘anti-Chinese’ broadcasts to ensure that TV ‘guides public opinion on the Dalai issue’. State TV has shown a series of documentaries which paint self-immolators as ‘criminals’ or mentally unstable individuals and include interviews where intimidatedlooking survivors tell CCP reporters that they ‘regret’ their actions. In Malho, the Chinese state attempted to gain information about self-immolations by offering cash rewards for those ‘exposing crimes’ and ‘committing fault’ by aiding or supporting self-immolators. The ‘crimes’ listed on the notices included inciting self-immolation, displaying pictures of the Dalai Lama during funerals, raising ‘separatist’ slogans, taking photos and videos of selfimmolators, ‘spreading rumours’, ‘indulging in provocative talks’ and offering condolences to the families of selfimmolators. And since then, China has been handing down harsh sentences for these acts, with the new ‘crime’ of ‘intentional homicide’ leading to a suspended death sentence for helping a self-immolator. And Yarphel, the uncle of Dorjee Lhundup, who self-immolated in November 2012, was sentenced to 15 months just for carrying a photo of his nephew at his funeral, with the state branding this understandable act of grief ‘indulging in illegal activities’.
The state also announced it will cut benefits and aid to the families of self-immolators and anyone in contact with them, again attempting to isolate those close to the martyrs and scare others away from supporting them. The closure of monasteries and ‘corrective training’ for anyone who contacted self-immolator’s families was promised; a notion similar to the repressive ‘patriotic re-education’ of Tibetan monks and nuns. Cash rewards for reporting such ‘crimes’ and exposing anybody who planned to self-immolate rose from around £120 to around £20,000, and families of self-immolators have also been offered bribes to denounce their actions. But when a photo of one such notice made its way onto the internet, activists started calling the number on it, telling officials who answered that Tibet will be free. Notices in Rebkong stated that self-immolations have "caused serious damage to harmony and stability (and) been a negative influence on the nation” and that CCP officials must “forcefully maintain the appearance of social stability throughout the prefecture (and) must strictly crack down on and smash the small number of criminals who despicably manipulate people who do not understand the real situation and incite them to self-immolate and create social grievances.” Maintaining ‘appearances’ seems to be a priority, but with resistance deep in the hearts of Tibetans, any appearances of stability are proving deceptive.
Symbols of nationhood
On 6th September, Tibetans at Bonpo Township school in Zachu lowered a Chinese state flag during the night and the next day replaced it with a banned Tibetan national flag. They also made flyers calling for ‘free Tibet’ and distributed them in the school grounds. The authorities removed the flag but couldn’t find those responsible. It was similar to an incident earier in 2012 when Tibetans pulled down a Chinese flag during a ceremony, then from offices and hospitals in Akho town, Ngaba. Also in September, despite heavy restrictions over the possession of portraits of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Tibetans in the Bathang region paraded large pictures of their spiritual leader. Large pictures of His Holiness were being carried on the backs of motorbikes to be used in the enthronement ceremony of the reincarnate lama Tulku Tenzin Nyima, which was attended by around 10,000. And China had to scrape prayers praising the Dalai Lama off rock faces in March as Tibetans again defied China’s attempts to vilify him. Intrinsically Tibetan symbols and motifs like these are being used by Tibetans as a means of resistance against the state and to assert Tibetans’ identity. PHOTOS: Note put up to persuade Tibetans to report on self-immolators for cash rewards, Chinese troops in full fire fighting gear in Tiananmen Square, drawing depicting China’s tactics to counter self-immolation.
China stokes border rows
China has stepped up its provocation of India as well as Japan and Taiwan, threatening its neighbours’ sovereign territory. The claims on Aranachal Pradesh and Aksai Chin in India have been bubbling for some time with frequent border clashes, but the Chinese state added to the pressure in November, altering the map on Chinese passports. As internationally accepted documents, passports define state boundaries and travel between them, but the new Chinese passports include Aranachal Pradesh and Aksai Chin, the entire South China Sea and Taiwan as Chinese sovereign territory; claims which are not accepted by the rest of the world. If Indian officials were to put state stamps on these passports as Chinese tourists came through customs, it could be seen as a tacit endorsement, so India has changed its passport stamp… to an image of its own map of the region, showing the Indian territories as Indian. So effectively, each Indian stamp offers China a ‘correction’. Meanwhile Taiwan, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam, whose territory is also claimed by China on the map, have demanded they be changed.
China has rejected India’s application to re-open a Consulate in Lhasa, which was closed during border wars between the two in 1962. India made the request as a reciprocal measure when China asked to open a new Consulate in Chennai, with India saying that as China’s biggest trading partner, a Lhasa consulate would help strengthen trade routes. It’s unknown what political motivations India may have had, but China has shown it’s sensitive about the issue. India has rejected offers of alternative locations for the Consulate. The US is also seeking a Consulate in Lhasa, and has rejected the idea of China opening any new Consulates in the US until China allows it. And China worsened tensions with India in February by announcing plans to create dams on the Brahmaputra river, which millions downstream in India depend on for survival. India said it would take a ‘considered view’ before acting over the hydropower plants in Dagu, Jiacha and Jiexu. China also said it would press ahead with building 13 dams on the Salween, despite strong pressure from environmental groups, as the project could displace 40,000 people including in Tibet and Burma and submerge 20 miles of farmable land. China has also fallen out of favour with the Arab League over its support of Syria and Iran and treatment of Uyghurs, has been criticsed for not condeming North Korea’s military threats and African and South American countries are expressing unhappiness over mass migration. Even the relationship with Russia is tetchy as the two powers compete for influence.
Adding to disagreements with India and the ongoing attempts to obtain political control over Nepal and Taiwan, relations between China and Japan took a dip when China claimed ownership of the uninhabited Senkaku Islands off Japan’s coast. Under Japanese control and technically owned by a Japanese businessman, the governor had proposed to officially buy the islands for the nation to build a telecommunications base and port, but after China’s threats he added “if the worst comes to the worst, we would probably station Japanese self defense forces there.” He underlined the need for Japan to defend its territory against Chinese expansionism, saying “think of Tibet; it’s now a dependent territory of China… They don’t have a country. They don’t have a leader. They’ve even lost their culture... I don’t want Japan to end up as a second Tibet.”
Chinese and Japanese nationalists both made landings on the islands in August, and China encouraged antiJapanese protests in 20 Chinese cities, where people smashed Japanese-made cars and vandalised Japaneseowned businesses. The incidents included a Chinese nationalist tearing the Japanese flag off a car carrying Japan’s Beijing Ambassador, for which the Embassy filed a protest with the Chinese Foreign Ministry. A series of tit-for-tat flag stunts by activists from both sides are just the latest incidents in the ever-complex web of island sovereignty disputes between China, Japan, Russia, Taiwan, the Philippines and Vietnam. Historians, geographers and international lawyers can argue the various cases ad infinitum, whilst politicians around the world cautiously watch regional tensions rise. But the response to the latest Senkaku / Diaoyu spat also casts an interesting light on domestic Chinese politics, which is equally as important as the foreign relations dimension. When protests began, some Chinese protesters evern called for China to occupy the islands. These protests, unlike most in China, were allowed, and when protesters shared videos of them online, they were not censored. Promoting a ‘common foe’, in this case Japan rather than Tibetans, helps to create the idea of oneness between the Chinese people and the Chinese state, keeping Chinese citizens from turning their anger against the government over issues such as the slowing economy and high profile political scandals currently facing the country. But it’s a dangerous game which may yet cause the government some serious problems. Allowing people onto the streets in this manner may act as a political ‘safetyvalve’ to let off steam, but it may equally give a taste for dissent. Similarly the skills that people can gain from even the most fleeting of protest movements are easily transferable to other situations. Whilst the CCP has previously been able to roll out anti-Japanese demonstrations then cut them off at an politically suitable time, with China’s progress slowing, it may not always be so easy to put the protest-genie back in the bottle. PHOTOS: The Japanese flag is raised on the Senkaku/Dioyu islands, the map in the new Chinese passports and the illegally claimed areas, crowds of anti-Japanese protesters in China and Chinese protesters destroy a Japanese car
A day for martyrs
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Hundreds marched in London and Edinburgh on Uprising Day, joining many thousands around the world. With over 100 self-immolations in Tibet in the past few years, Tibetans and supporters from Dharamsala to New York took to the streets to push for stronger support for the Tibetan nation. In London, a colourful march started at Downing Street and continued past London’s main landmarks, finishing at the Chinese Embassy. Letters were given in to both David Cameron and Chinese Ambassador Liu Xiaoming, demanding that China ends its repressive policies and seriously addresses the Tibetan people’s grievances. In a passionate rally in Edinburgh, a Tibetan activist raised the flag inside the Chinese Consulate’s grounds.
On 13th March, around 150 MPs were lobbied at Westminster and locally, calling on the UK to offer stronger support for Tibet by taking part in multi-lateral action. With the situation at crisis point and Tibet under lockdown, very little news came out in the spring, but the protests are continuing as they have done solidly for years. Will Xi Jinping realise what Hu Jintao did not; that the world opposes the occupation?
Pushing the message from Tibet
The current crisis in Tibet has led to increased strategic and political debate within the Tibetan community in exile, seen in a series of special meetings involving the CTA, TSGs and Tibetan communities. Strategies are always going to differ but debate, even if it involves argument, is a sign of health for Tibetan democracy and should always be encouraged. With His Holiness the Dalai Lama having stood down from his political role, there’s space for Tibetans to bring forward new ideas while his influence is still present.
As a pro-rangzen group, SFT’s overall strategy may be different to that of followers of the ‘Middle Way’ approach, but in the end all Tibet groups must focus on the same key people; Tibetans in Tibet. We as Tibetans in exile and Tibet supporters have an important role to play in helping represent the demands of Tibetans inside and doing what we can to win freedom for them. It’s as the Dalai Lama has recently said; “Tibetans in Tibet are our boss”. As the self-immolations show, the crisis on the surface can become all-consuming; we all want to bare witness to what’s happening and give voice to those who lay their lives down for the cause. But at the same time we must find solutions and challenge the inaction of freedom-loving nations who are not pushing China hard enough to properly address the causes of the self-immolations and heightened protests in Tibet. This is the difference between being reactive and being strategic, and it’s encouraging to see more Tibetans inside and outside demonstrating their understanding of the big picture; that this is a long term fight for freedom which will involve many tactics. For some, freedom can be achieved through gaining the autonomy promised but not delivered in China’s constitution, for others it can only be achieved in an independent Tibet. But in the end we’ll get there as long as we keep the goal in mind; the concepts of freedom, identity and unity which Tibetans inside are calling for. By echoing the demands they are making, we are keeping that goal in focus.
Get involved in the UK SFT UK organises a variety of events, not just protests! In the last few months we’ve done talks on
nomad rights, training for the Tibetan community and unis and even making momos and talking about Tibetan artifacts at the Horniman Museum. With events like Art for Tibet coming up, there are loads of chances to get involved. Keep up to date by liking our Facebook page www.facebook.com/sftuk
Get kitted out for Tibet And with summer coming up, represent the cause by wearing Tibet merchandise! You can get t-shirts,
hoodies, books, bracelets, mugs, flags and other Tibet goods from the SFT UK website, so kit yourself out for summer and help fund SFT UK at the same time! www.sftuk.org/sft-online-store PHOTOS: March 10th protests clockwise; London, Brussels, London, New York, presenting the letter at Downing Street, London, Edinburgh, Tibetans in Tibet raise the flag, presenting about Tibetan food culture, SFT merchandise
Closing in on multi-lateral action
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Tibetans and supporters in the UK have been lobbying harder in the last year to secure muti-lateral action, and the international approach by SFT and others is starting to bare fruit. 56 US Congressmen wrote to Barack Obama in December after Congressmen Wolf and McGovern led the call to treat Tibet as a top priority. The letter called for the US to “work with partner nations and establish a contact group on Tibet to carry out strong, visible public diplomacy on this crisis''. The move came after the UN’s Navi Pillay called on China to ‘promptly address the long standing grievances’ of the Tibetan people, release political prisoners, allow human rights monitors and lift media restrictions. Both she and the Congressmen noted that China’s policies are increasing repression and are to blame for the self-immolations. US Special Co-ordinator for Tibetan Issues Marian Otero and Assistant Secretary of State Michael Posner also stated that ‘much more must be done’ over Tibet. The US said the likelihood of China negotiating is ‘dim’ and that “the Dalai Lama’s views are widely reflected within the Tibetan society and command the respect of the vast majority of Tibetans. His consistent advocacy of non-violence is an important factor in reaching an eventual lasting solution… failure to address these problems will lead to greater tensions inside China and will be an impediment to China’s social and economic development.”
The call for multi-lateral action grew through 2012, and now that the Dalai Lama’s envoys have quit their roles due to China’s unwillingness to negotiate, the multi-lateral approach is looking like the only viable option for nations to show they are really doing something. Even the British Foreign Office’s Hugo Swire, who has flatly rejected multi-lateral action in the past on the grounds that it would ‘anger’ China, has recently mentioned the idea in responses to supportive MPs, while EU High Representative Catherine Ashton made a strong statement which Hugo Swire noted the UK backs. She said “the EU calls upon the Chinese authorities to address the deep-rooted causes of the frustration of the Tibetan people and ensure that their civil, political, economic and social and cultural rights are respected, including their right to enjoy their own culture, to practice their own religion and to use their own language.” Germany, Switzerland, the Czech Republic and Poland have all called on China to address worsening human rights; some have called for an international forum or a specific EU Tibet representative. In Scotland, lobbying led to Edinburgh MSP Mario Baglio tabling a motion for the Scottish parliament, which hosts a public vote on Scottish independence in 2014, to back Tibetan independence day.
When the British Foreign Office released its annual report on rights and freedoms in China and Tibet earlier in 2012, SFT and others felt it didn’t go far enough, and asked supporters to comment on the government’s website. Opinions expressed included wanting more criticism of the oppression of nomads, students and intellectuals and calls for stronger policy suggestions given the failure of the Sino-Tibetan dialogue. There were so many comments that the Foreign Office added their own in response, saying “the Chinese government remains resolute on Tibet, keen to emphasise the economic development... we will continue to encourage the Chinese Government to work with local monasteries and communities to resolve the underlying grievances of the Tibetan people.” But they also revealed they had applied to visit Tibet and been denied in 2012, hinting at frustration over China’s approach. For years, the British Foreign Office has stuck to its support of the talks, even after the envoys resigned. But this year the wording of Foreign Office statements has begun to change. And in February, the Times revealed that the UK government is split on its approach to China; Prime Minister David Cameron and Chancellor George Osborne want to avoid angering Beijing over human rights in order to protect trade ties whereas Foreign Secretary William Hague and Deputy Prime Minister Neil Clegg believe the UK should take a stronger stance on Tibet. "Hague and Clegg are on the same side on this issue” said a government source, “they believe we need to stand up to the Chinese. For Clegg, human rights are a matter of principle. For Hague, it's about not kowtowing to the Chinese. He believes we need to stand up to them, or they will simply treat us with contempt. Cameron and Osborne are focused on trade. They want to keep the Chinese on side." The UK’s attitude toward China has become more fraught recently over Chinese hacking, while the Foreign Office was quoted as saying China’s criticism of Cameron and Clegg’s meeting with the Dalai Lama last year was ‘quite childish’. China has made a point of attempting to focus on Ireland and Scotland rather than England in response; according to a minister, "they like trying to wind us up by sending diplomats to Edinburgh and Dublin, but not to London. They make a really big deal of rolling out the red carpet for Alex Salmond, because they think it's one in the eye to London." But of course the Chinese state has not spoken up to back Scottish independence, showing again that their actions are motivated by petty politics rather than principles. As the electorate, the approach Britain takes is essentially up to us. Other nations, like the US, who Britain often sees as it’s closest partner, have been openly criticising China’s abuses in Tibet and not suffering in terms of trade; by lobbying we can show Cameron and Osborne that their approach is flawed. So SFT UK has been holding lobby trainings across the country to get more people pushing them in the right direction. Lobbying isn’t just for mass lobby day in March; keep writing to your MP by contacting them ! W O N T www.writetothem.com and push them to support multi-lateral action for Tibet. at C A PHOTOS: UN High Commissioner for Huan Rights Navi Pillay, lobbying in the US, SFT UK and others lobby at Westminster and showing support for the self-immolators at the Chinese Embassy, London
Failed policies
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On 14th March 2013, Xi Jinping officially became China’s new leader, replacing Hu Jintao. The Chinese Communist Party elects a new leader from its elite members every ten years, and though every time there’s speculation that the process may herald a change, hopes have always faded as it becomes clear the ‘same old China’ will prevail. When every leadership change comes along, we ask if we’re in a different place this time. What are the main issues and chalenges for the new leader? Each leader tends to inherit one key issue from their prececessor; a theme which dogged them through their Presidency, and what’s interesting is that where Hu Jintao’s main challenge was probably Taiwan, it looks like Xi Jinping’s will be Tibet. So how did Hu Jintao do on the issue, and what’s the challenge facing Xi Jinping?
Report card:
Hu Jintao
Born in 1942, hard-liner Hu Jintao was Secretary of the Tibetan Autonomous Region before becoming President, and imposed martial law in Tibet in 1988. Though Hu’s father died after being purged during the Cultural Revolution, leaving him to be brought up by an Aunt, he maintained the ‘strike hard’ approach and avoided discussion on political reform, instead focusing on pushing economic success. He retained control of Tibet policy directly throughout his term as President, which saw the 2008 uprising, the largest since 1959.
Area of achievement:
economy
It can’t be denied that China has achieved huge economic successes during Hu Jintao’s leadership, though he alone can’t be credited for China’s rise. China will probably become the world’s largest super power during Xi Jinping’s term, and Hu has overseen much of the groundwork for that. But while the rich in China have grown richer and the middle classes have developed, the poor are in abject poverty while ethnic and national groups like the Tibetans continue to suffer as China extracts resources for its own economic benefit. Every economic boom ends eventually, and when the middle classes start to feel the pinch, economists may start asking whether it would’ve been wiser to slow things down. China’s biggest strength could end up being its downfall, because in an autocractic state, when people can no longer support themselves, they may turn on the regime.
Area of concern:
corruption
With economic development has come corruption, and since most companies are state run, that means CCP officials are often in the firing line, including Premier Wen Jiabao and Hu Jintao’s own son. It’s widely known that CCP ‘princelings’ take a heafty cut of state funds, and that the Communist ideal of government for the people is in stark contrast to the reality of elite rule in China. More and more Chinese people are getting critical of corruption, speaking out in blogs, papers and protests. Corruption has also dirtied China’s reputation abroad; the lure of Chinese money is too great for capitalist states to take a stand, but as soon as that lure begins to dip or alternatives develop, the sprectre of corruption could hit home. Hu Jintao has governed during a time of Chinese propsperity while the rest of the world has been in recession; when the boot is on the other foot, will state corruption be forced out?
Area of concern:
suppression
Hu is credited with founding the ‘grasp with two hands’ strategy on Tibet; developing the economy and infastructure while cracking down on dissent. Though this approach has allowed China to counter criticism of human rights abuses by pointing out economic success, like any businessman Hu will ultimately be judged on results; did it work? With Tibetan resistance stronger and more diverse now even than when he took over China’s Tibet policies at the time of the 1988-9 uprising, the answer has to be that his policies have been a resounding failure. Though Chinese leaders themselves are less influential than the overall Party, Hu hasn’t done himself any favours by holding on to Tibet policy throughout his term as President and failing to defeat what he would call the ‘Dalai Clique’. Hu will probably blindly push for the failed policies to continue from behind the scenes, but when it comes to Tibet at least, he will always be seen as a man who failed to keept down an occupied nation.
Result:
Fail
Assignment brief:
Xi Jinping
Born in 1953 and the son of Communist Party hero Xi Zhongxun, Xi Jinping is seen as a liberal in the Party, with a track record of being tough on crime, including sending in troops to disperse large protests by Han Chinese. Unlike Hu, he hasn’t held an official position in Tibet, but led a large delegation in 2011, during which he underlined his distain of the ‘Dalai Clique’. His father’s opinion was different; the Dalai Lama had ‘great affection’ for him, and gave him a watch which he treasured. Xi senior was purged 3 times by Mao and also criticised the Party’s handling of the Tiananmen protests. The family suffered due to this, with Xi apparently losing a sister. Xi is married to singer Peng Liyuan, known for propaganda songs but also reportedly a Buddhist. It’s thought Xi wants to show he is ‘redder than red’ to prove his loyalty.
Area of promise:
reform
Xi’s father backed the progressive political reforms of Hu Yaobang; it’s said Xi visits Hu Yaobang’s widow every Chinese New Year and that the family sent out a wreath for purged reformer Zhao Ziyang’s funeral. Xi is definately on the ‘reformist’ side of the Party, like Wen Jiabao, but it remains to be seen whether the suffering he went through due to his father’s attitudes has stayed with him and whether he will open up the reform debate or sidestep it. Either way, it’s likely to be ‘reform with Chinese characteristics’; the idea of democracy will not be in his mind.
Area of concern:
truancy
When people don’t come to work, you have to wonder about their commitment, or whether they have problems with their colleagues. But even with the backstabbing that goes on in the political arena, you never see a head of state vanish, so Xi’s disappearance just before he was due to step up into office and the conspiracy theories surrounding it raised eyebrows around the world; is this really a ‘developed’ and trustworthy leadership to be doing business with, or just a mafia-style operation? So what if Xi disappears again, cancelling important meetings with world leaders? What if he disappears for good, either through illness, stress or pressure from within the Party? It won’t look good for China or it’s ‘democratic’ system of electing leaders, and probably most importantly of all, it’ll make the Party look weak in the eyes of its own people, who are increasingly pouring scourn on the CCP’s running of the country.
Area of concern:
resistance
The Party will be suspicious of Xi’s father’s close relationship with the Dalai Lama; the ‘devil in monk’s clothing’ himself. Xi needs to prove he dismisses his father’s ideas of rights for Tibetans if he is to keep favour with the old guard. "No Chinese Communist will betray his father" experts have said, but the CCP expects Xi to regard the Party as his father. A source with links to the CCP said "every generation of Chinese leaders must resolve problems left over from the previous generation. For Hu, it was Taiwan, for Xi, it's Tibet. More and more government spending, more and more security, is not going to buy enduring stability in Tibet." Resistance is growing; this will be Xi’s big challenge.
During the 2008 Tibetan Uprising, Xi stated cryptically that “we should have normal hearts”, and during his visit to the US in 2012 he conceded to Barack Obama that China has work to do on human rights. But during a visit to Tibet, also in 2012, he said he would crack down on the ‘Dalai clique’ and "completely smash any plot to destroy stability in Tibet and jeopardise national unity.” So unless he makes a sudden about-turn, we can only assume Xi will continue the same hard-line policies which China has used in Tibet for decades. Even if Xi himself is more of a reformer, the warring factions of the CCP make it stagnant- any change of course threatening to break the Party apart. As a member of the elite, Xi will likely be the same old kind of Chinese leader; one which puts that elite, and himself, first.
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important we know our enemy d by Xi Jinping and Li Keqiang, it’s lace rep n bee e hav ao Jiab n We ng leaders, despite the failed Now that Hu Jintao and out the stops to show them as stro ing pull be will na Chi . them fy ple to mock Xi with video spoofs, and also that we demysti in November SFT encouraged peo nce fere con P CC the ing dur so , in! http://bit.ly/X43lNX policies they’re backing king Xi as he leads China, so join moc on y carr ’ll We gs. son and pictures, street theatre China’s leadership structure is complex, but it’s important that Tibet activists know who we’re protesting against. You can learn more about the CCP, it’s key representatives and their relationship to Tibet at www.chinese-leaders.org
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Nomads take a stand
The plight of Tibet’s nomads is one which strikes a chord with many people, especially in a time where we’re realising our wasteful lifestyles are not sustainable and are seeking ‘green’ alternatives. Tibetan nomads are being gradually eradicated by the Chinese state, not because they’re involved in politics or activism; they are doing nothing ‘illegal’ even under China’s clumsy and arbitrary laws, they’re simply living nomadic lives. Though nomadic resistance has a long history, China wants to destroy this lifestyle because simply by being nomadic, they avoid tight state control.
Mid last year, China’s State Council Steering Committee announced a new five year plan for nomadic resettlement, intending it to be the final step in eliminating the nomadic way of life for Tibetan and Mongolian herders. China seeks to resettle all 1.16 million by 2015 “to accelerate the development mode shift of animal husbandry and grassland eco-system protection in pastoralist areas, to maintain ethnic harmony and frontier stability, and to lay a firm foundation for building an all around prosperous society”. China is a signatory to the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which says “indigenous peoples shall not be forcibly removed from their lands or territories,” but they’re doing exactly that. Tibetans would argue that they had a prosperous society before the Chinese invasion, and that eco-system protection is exactly what they’ve maintained for many generations. But in Tibet politics always comes before the environment, and occupation has opened up a wealth of natural resources to exploit. In recent years, the environment has become a key battleground issue as Tibetans attempt to protect the plateau. In Tsetar Village in Kangtsa, site of long term Chinese coal mining operations, Tibetans have been banned from taking photos or coming near the mines as China attempts to hide the extent of operations from them. The Chinese state faced opposition in August when it attempted to launch a mining project at Samlong; residents camped around the holy mountain with protest posters and sent complaint letters to officials, evoking point 44 of the Chinese Constitution, which promises environmental protection. In August, nomads from Gade Country, Golog staged protests against gold miners at the sacred mountain Dringye Ngo Sorma. Local officials had visited the nomads to warn them that this was a government project and cannot be disturbed, but the next day the miners’ tents had been burned down. Officials again underlined the project must be left alone but nomads have stated their intention to keep protesting. And in Mando village, authorites demanded 400 families leave, thought to be so that a dam could be built; they refused unless the state rebuilt the three monasteries which they’d have to leave behind. A tragic mine disaster in Gyama in March has also been blamed on China’s over-exploitation of the valley.
China pays some heed to environmental agencies when it comes to issues like renewable energy and panda conservation, but when it comes to Tibet, the threat of ‘splittist’ movements takes over. China still openly states that it seeks to “end the nomadic way of life forever”, and despite this approach fueling the drive of environmental activists in Tibet, the regime is sticking to its failed environmental policies. China also continues to develop its rail network in Tibet; known for shipping Han migrants in and Tibet’s precious mineral resources out. The Shigatse stretch is said to be ahead of schedule with a 2014 opening planned, and mining looks set to increase in those areas. The extension also worries India, which fears that China will use it for troop mobilisation along the Indo-Tibet border; a fear well founded judging by China’s next project, the further expansion of the railway to just 500km from the Indian border and to the border with Nepal, over which China is already tightening its grip. Meanwhile, state bottled water company ‘Tibet 5100’ is expanding to East Asia, Europe and the US, hoping to challenge Evian’s market share with it’s Tibet-sourced water, which makes money for China while Tibetans don’t benefit. It was seen as the ‘official drink’ of the CCP’s November conference, showing the company’s darker, propaganda purpose.
While Tibetans have deep-seated grievances against the Chinese state, a growing number of Chinese citizens are also expressing their opposition to state policies. In Quidong in August, there was a mass demonstration of between 50 and 100 thousand people against industrial pollution and environmental damage which is affecting drinking water in the city. And dozens were injured a month earlier when riots erupted after Chinese police beat and fired tear gas at a crowd protesting against the building of a state copper plant. And in Tibet, the damage is clear; even a Chinese research centre released a 30-year study recently showing that Tibet’s glaciers are declining at a rapid rate, with industrialisation to blame, opposing the state’s increasingly derided claim that the damage is due to nomads over-grazing the land. Protests against corruption are also rife in China as the side effects of its rapid growth start to unravel. It’s an increasingly familiar story, and the less the state listens, the more widespread the resistance will get. Read more about the plight of nomads at www.nomadrights.org
PHOTOS: Han travellers take photos of the Tibetan plateau from the Gormo-Lhasa railway, just one of the many diverse landscapes of Tibet, Tibetan environmental protest in Golog, huge numbers at Chinese anti-pollution protest in Quidong
Reclaim the past, shape the future
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Tibetans and supporters gathered across the world to mark Tibetan Independence Day for the first time on 13th February. This date in 2013 was the 100th anniversary of the day Tibetans re-iterated their independence with the 13th Dalai Lama’s Proclamation of Independence after pushing invading Chinese forces out of their country. As the anniversary was marked, the importance of Tibetan self-governance was underlined as confirmation of the 100th self-immolation in Tibet emerged. With the crisis deepening and the call for independence becoming stronger both inside and outside Tibet, marking the anniversary will be an important opportunity to push for independence in coming years.
On 13th February, Tibetans gathered at the Imperial War Museum’s Tibetan Peace Garden to unveil the Proclamation of Independence scroll, while another recreation of the historic document was unfurled in front of China’s Mission to the United Nations in New York. Similar scenes took place in India, Taiwan, Poland and across Europe. “As we mark 100 years since the 13th Dalai Lama re-asserted Tibetan sovereignty, we also mark the devastating milestone of the 100th self-immolation protest inside Tibet,” said Tenzin Dorjee, Executive Director of Students for a Free Tibet. “Tibetans still long for and deserve the freedom that was taken away when Chinese Communist troops invaded Tibet in 1949. It is our hope that today, by publicly commemorating our history as an independent country; a history that the Chinese government has spent 60 years trying to erase from the global consciousness, we will begin to counter China’s false claims over Tibet and assert our determination to once again be free. ”
When Thubten Gyatso, the 13th Dalai Lama, took refuge in India during the 1910-1912 Manchu invasion of Tibet, it wasn’t long before he returned to an independent Tibet. The powerful Chinese empire crumbled just a year later and Tibetans took advantage by pushing the invaders out. After three decades of freedom from occupation, China would invade again, this time under Mao’s communists, but even after over sixty years of trying, China has failed to sinofy Tibet and Tibetans. The nation is still there in the hearts of the people, waiting again for the opportunity to drive the occupiers out. Like before, today’s Chinese empire won’t be on top forever, and the current occupation will one day also come to an end.
Tibet gatecrashes Olympics
London’s 2012 Olympics was a stark contrast to the last games, Beijing 2008, and SFT UK’s approach was very different too. Instead of protesting, this time our aim was to get the Tibetan nation into the mix. In the weeks before the Olympics, we went around the Olympic venues asking members of the public their views on the Games. Some were excited, others had doubts, but all were shocked to know that Dhondup Wangchen was arrested for asking Tibetans the same. We released a 2012 update for his film. We leafleted at some of the Olympic venues to make Londoners and tourists aware that China dirtied the Games’ legacy by oppressing the Tibetan people and how UK citizens could help repair it by prompting their MPs to speak out against China’s occupation. We went to the big screens showing the Olympics and mingled with people from all around the world, getting the Tibetan flag in there and finding most people were pleased to recognise Tibet, its flag and its people. We then staged the ‘Forbidden Games’; a sports day for Tibetans at the Olympic screen at Hyde Park, where thousands of people watching the Games also caught a bit of Tibetans representing their nation in sports too. Taiwan, always forced to compete as ‘Chinese Taipei’ due to China’s complaints, was also in the news when China demanded Taiwanese national flags be removed from displays on Regents Street.
There was also controversy over Tibetan long distance walker Choeyang Kyi, who represented China. So SFT UK and the Tibetan Community made sure people watching the race on TV around the world were aware of her true nationality by lining the route with Tibetan flags, some of which were followed around by large Chinese flags suddenly appearing to obscure them. The first Tibetan to compete at the Games, she raised eyebrows by stating in an interview before the race that she was Tibetan, rather than say she was Chinese, and after winning bronze said ‘‘I'm extremely honored to take part as the first representative of Tibetans at the Olympics “ and on Tibetans shouting to her to win for Tibet, ‘‘I heard it! I heard a Tibetan cheering me on!” It was unclear whether she was being used for propaganda, or if her family would suffer if she’d made a stand for Tibet, but the point was made that China can’t claim Tibetans just as it can’t claim Tibet.
PHOTOS: Peace Garden, London, Feb lobbying, Edinburgh castle, 100 metres and Forbidden Games group, rehashed table, Buckingham Palace 20k walk, adding Tibet to the Parliament flag wall, meeting Olympic fans. Watch the film ‘Leaving Fear Behind: 4 years on’ at http://bit.ly/ZhQcyt
Politics is for the people SFTUK 7
One of the biggest recent changes in the Tibet movement in exile has been the effect of the Dalai Lama stepping down from his political role. As more Tibetans in exile follow in the footsteps of Tibetans inside by getting politically active, the transition to non-secular leadership which His Holiness has advocated is starting to take shape. In any democracy, there will be debate, disagreement and alternative strategies; a fact embraced by His Holiness but feared by the Chinese state, which continues to vilify the Tibetan spiritual leader. His Holiness recently answered questions about the changes in the exiled leadership.
How has the adjustment of relinquishing your political role been for you and for Tibetans? I am very happy. In fact, one of my secrets is that the day I formally announced or handed over all my political responsibility, that night I had very unusual sound sleep. No dreams. Just very sound sleep. I really feel, in any case, I am getting older. Our struggle is an issue or struggle for the rights of a nation. That responsibility should be carried on by the Tibetan people themselves, and should not rely on one person.
Your special envoys resigned. Do you share their concerns that China is moving away from a solution? In the last 10 years, we have had nine meetings. Because their policy is something fixed, there has been no effect. Therefore, the two envoys also feel frustrated and they resigned. That does not mean we have no interest to talk. There is no change on our side. Once the [Chinese] leadership is thinking in a more realistic way, we are ready.
Following recent problems, such as the 2008 riots in Tibet and now the self-immolations, Beijing has claimed the incidents were planned in Dharamsala. You have said there needs to be a fact-finding mission. That is very important. After the 2008 crisis, even Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, who is usually considered more moderate, blamed all these crises as being instigated from Dharamsala. Then I immediately responded, saying please send some Chinese officials and check all of our records. But there was no response. When the first selfimmolation happened, again I expressed that. The Chinese still blame everything on us. If the Chinese have the confidence, they must allow the international community to see the truth. That is very important. If they do not allow, it is an indication that they have the feeling of guilt, that they have something to hide. Since 2008, local conditions are much worse… On the other hand, I met a number of Chinese who told me that after the 2008 crisis, they paid more attention about the crisis and feel genuine sympathy. In that respect, there is some benefit. The Chinese propaganda always says the Tibetan people are very happy, that they were liberated from the feudal system under the Dalai Lama. So now their propaganda is on shaky ground.
Following the immolations, more people may be aware of problems, but some Tibetan writers have said young Tibetans must cherish their life and not give it away. Do you share this view? This is a very, very delicate political issue. Now, the reality is that if I say something positive, then the Chinese immediately blame me. If I say something negative, then the family members of those people feel very sad. They sacrificed their own life. It is not easy. So I do not want to create some kind of impression that this is wrong. So the best thing is to remain neutral. Right from the beginning, when this sort of event happened, what I said, and still I am insisting, is this is not happening due to alcohol or family quarrels. Now the Chinese government must carry thorough research, what is the cause of this, and not pretend that nothing is wrong. Like (former Chinese leader) Hu Yaobang said in the early 1980s when he came to Lhasa, he publicly apologised about what they had done, the past mistakes. He promised they would follow a more realistic policy. Now for that kind of courage, that kind of spirit, the time has come.
No to Lhasa theme park
China has again displayed disrespect for Tibetan culture, attempting to turn it into a tacky tourist attraction with the development of a £3 billion theme park in Lhasa, right in the same area where Topgye Tsetan and Dhargye self-immolated in May 2012. Covering 2,000 acres and set to open in the next five years, the propaganda park will present a picture of ‘harmonious’ Tibet. China hopes to create an extravagant ‘Disneyland’ that will draw attention away from the realities on the ground, much as it did with the Beijing Olympics and China Expo; throwing money into propaganda to distract from the truth. SFT is opposing the building of the theme park, which celebrates the marriage of a Tibetan prince and Chinese princess; a strange choice since the very notion of both countries having royalty would suggest they were historically separate countries; something which China always denies. But with travel to Tibet limited, it’s unknown how many will visit. PHOTOS: His Holiness delivering a recent speech, an example of China’s ‘Disnification’ of Tibetan culture for propaganda purposes and the reality; troops surround Jokhang Temple in December
Yonten Gyatso ‘Crime’: Sharing information, trying to contact the UN. Status: 7 years; tortured.
Jigme Dolma ‘Crime’: Protesting for independence and the release of prisoners. Status: 3 years; tortured.
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Same old China, same old tactics
Yonten Gyatso, a 37-year-old monk from Ngaba, was given a seven year jail sentence on 18th June and immediately became another celebrated figure of the resistance. He had been detained for sharing pictures and information online of the self-immolation of the nun Tenzin Wangmo on 17th October 2011 and attempting to make calls to human rights mechanisms of the UN. He had been in detention for six months, during which time he was subjected to horrific torture and had often considered suicide.
And his case is far from unusual. As the self-immolations have continued, so have the arrests and disappearances. These include monk Sonam Sherab; sentenced to two years for photographing Chinese armed police as they raised the Nyatso Zilkar monastery, Kirti’s Lobsang Tsultrim and Lobsang Jangchup; given 11 and 8 years in connection with the self-immolation of 18-year-old monk Gepey, three monks who didn’t attend the Drango protest last January, where police shot protesters dead, were Lobsang Kunchok jailed for sharing information about it while 23 protesters got between 10 and 14 ‘Crime’: ‘Intentional years. Several monks got between 1 and 10 years for ‘outside exposure’, three were homicide’ for aiding a self-immolator. detained for offering prayers to self-immolator Wangchen Norbu, seven were jailed Status: Suspended over Tsering Namgyal’s self-immolation. A man named Logya was given a 4 year death sentence. sentence for holding up a picture of the Dalai Lama and Dhukger got two years for Sonam Sherab giving Logya a place to stay that night. In one of the most troubling recent cases, 17‘Crime’: Taking year-old Jigme Dolma, who was tortured after being arrested for staging a lone protest photos of Chinese calling for Tibetan independence and the release of political prisoners in June, was police raiding a given a three year sentence, for which it seems she has been relocated to China. monastery. Status: 2 years. Authorities beat and arrested 22-year-old monk Konchog Yarphel for calling for independence in a park in August, while Kelsang Tenzin was beaten and detained for calling for the return of the Dalai Lama and the release of prisoners. In a chilling case, monk Pema Norbu was simply walking home to Riwoche County when he was detained at a checkpoint; his books and CDs were taken and he was beaten to death by police. Tashi Dhargyal ‘Crime’: Taking part in protests in Drango in January 2012 Status: 14 years, after being missing.
Popular businessman Nangchen Tashi was detained by Chinese authorities in September after officials demolished his house and hotel. The 47-year-old is an advocate of preserving Tibetan culture and financing poor people’s studies, and had been arrested and tortured in 2010. His wife, sons and daughter were also arrested for challenging the authorities when they appeared without a warrent to destroy the home; the family have been released. Another businessman, Tsering Wangyal, disappeared in August for unknown reasons; he had previously been released after detention connected to Ba County protests in March 2012, and a businesswoman named Soyak was detained for encouraging Tibetans to take part in the Lhakar movement, conducting weekly vigils at Yak Square, Yushu.
There have been far more individual cases over the last year, but China is also cracking down large scale. 70 monks were taken from four monasteries in Chamdo in August for 15 days ‘legal education’. Some, like missing monk Tsering Gyaltsen, never come back, while the stress of arrests is all too clear; the mother of ‘Golog’ Jigme ‘Crime’: Helping monk Tansel, who disappeared when detained in June, died of worry when news about him film interviews never came, and authorities played on local’s concerns when they said officials were coming with Tibetans. to build houses for earthquake survivors but instead sixty bus loads of officials raided Kilkar Status: Unknown; monastery and arrested five. And prison sentences are just the tip of the iceberg as inmates tortured. are abused; Yeshi Gyaltso, arrested in a 2008, has been sent home partially paralysed Dhondup Wangchen and suffering mental instability due to torture and Gyari Thar was also sent home in a ‘Crime’: Directing the critical condition after he was arrested during a protest against the detention of 50 monks film ‘Leaving Fear Behind’ in 2008. in March 2012, an incident where Chinese police threw explosives to disperse the crowd, Status: 6 years; resulting in many injuries and the death of a 12-year-old boy. Long term prisoners Dawa tortured. Gyaltsen and Jigme Gyatso from Kanlho were released, probably so that they didn’t die of Tsering Gyaltsen torture injuries in jail. ‘Golog’ Jigme Gyatso, assistant on ‘Leaving Fear Behind’, was re‘Crime’: Taking arrested on unknown charges in September and his monastery demolished, while jailed part in a protest. director Dhondup Wangchen was given the CPJ International Press Freedom Award for Status: Missing presumed killed Courageous Reporting, which China criticised. And sentences are getting harsher. The monk by Chinese forces. Lobsang Kunchok was handed a suspended death sentence in January while Lobsang Tsering received 10 years and Phagpa 13 for ‘intentional homicide’ due to aiding selfJigme Gyatso ‘Crime’: Leading a immolators. They were convicted in trials farcical not only for the oddly named new ‘crime’ pro-independence but for China’s typical use of trial without proper process, denial of access to lawyers and group in Tibet possible beatings to obtain confessions. It’s all part of the way the Chinese state handles Status: Freed in bad its greatest fear; people who disagree with it. And it’s the same old approach which health after 17 years continues to draw suspicion about China worldwide, and which in the end, continues to fail. Lobsang Tsering Campaigning for the release of political prisoners is a long term campaign but it can have success, and the more cases that are made public, the more we are carrying on brave dissenters’ work. Help fund our campaigns at www.sftuk.org/guardians
‘Crime’: ‘Intentional homicide’ for aiding self-immolators with ‘forces from abroad’ Status: 10 years.
Is China losing grip of the net? SFTUK 7
As internet use becomes more widespread and computing more wireless and peer-to-peer, Chinese bloggers are becoming a powerful opposition element. Bloggers have been waging campaigns against state corruption, lack of free expression and environmental damage which have scored key successes in forcing policy changes. And the UN has recently passed a new resolution demanding freedom of information and expression on the net. The move comes as a welcome one in the eyes of Chinese bloggers, but the regime takes a different approach, denying access and even employing its own bloggers, known as the ’50 cent party’, to disseminate anti-democratic opinions, at a price. "The 50 centers say that a democratic system isn't suitable for mainland China" one genuine blogger said; "that's like castrating a man to make a eunuch and then saying that men aren't suited for a sex life."
China’s other approach is to bring in new filtering systems and censorship rules, claiming it’s doing so to limit ‘harmful content’ such as pornography and copyright breaches, but a series of leaks have made it common knowledge that ‘harmful content’ also includes foreign news agencies, information on issues such as Tibet and Tiananmen Square and access to micro-blogging sites which would make it easier for users to share information and organise opposition. When Xi Jinping disappeared from public view recently with a suspected back injury, both ‘Xi Jinping’ and ‘back injury’ were blocked on search engines, not only preventing debate but meaning supporters of the new leader and those seeking medical aid for spinal injuries were denied the information they wanted. "Of course there are security issues on the Internet, like fraud, pornography, violent content, and so on” said a prominent Chinese blogger, “but all countries have to deal with these problems. In democratic countries, these issues are dealt with according to the rule of law, which provides a very effective way to manage them.” Then US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton backed the UN’s Promotion, Protection and Enjoyment of Human Rights on the Internet resolution, saying “this resolution is a welcome addition in the fight for the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms online. We are witnessing an alarming surge in the number of cases involving government censorship and persecution of individuals for their actions online, sometimes for just a single tweet or text message." In Tibet, where individuals have been given lengthy sentences including life in jail for sharing information online, the US’s stand against web censorship really is a matter of life and death, while oppressive regimes like China are afraid that the internet offers opportunities for dissidents to mobilise as they did successfully in Tunisia and Egypt in 2011. US rights agencies have also shamed China by naming it alongside North Korea as ‘the worst of the worst of the world’s most repressive societies’ and the US State Department has sparked China’s anger by being vocal about web censorship on numerous occasions in the last few years.
With 250 million people using micro-blogging sites in China and 513 million using forums, social media and bulletin boards to gain news information not provided by state channels, detaining a handful of dissenting netizens and online editors is just a drop in the ocean. Even China can’t detain all its net users, and even China can’t cut off access completely; there would be a revolution. So the internet is another area where the ‘same old’ China and its old fashioned repressive policies are coming face to face with the realities of the modern world. Some companies, like Apple recently, may bow to pressure, but Chinese people will use the web and debate issues regardless of who rules China; the CCP needs to keep up with the times or it might just be time up. A report by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences has revealed that urban Chinese citizens place greater trust in anonymous bloggers than in state-run news outlets; more bad news for the CCP as it rolls out propaganda outfits like Xinhua around the world in the hope that ‘news with Chinese characteristics’ will stick, but if their own people aren’t even buying it… The rise of Sina Weibo and micro-blogging facilities are giving young and middle aged Chinese alternatives to state news, which already blocks outlets like Bloomberg, New York Times and Al Jazeera as well as YouTube and Twitter. China has been placed 174th out of 179 in Reporters Without Borders’ press freedom rankings, with only countries like North Korea, Syria and Iran coming out worse. The report said China “has more journalists, bloggers and cyber-dissidents in prison than any other country” and that protests in Tibet, East Turkistan and Inner Mongolia, “regularly give rise to harsh crackdowns by the authorities.” It also detailed how foreign journalists working in Beijing live in constant fear of losing their visas for covering stories the state may wish to keep quiet. The Chinese state has also been cracking down on mobile phones in Lhasa in an attempt to prevent information about abuses from being exposed. A state ‘cell phone inspection work team’ started scanning monks’ mobiles at Drepung Monastery on 8th March, with the project expanding to other monasteries later. New rules on registering and hosting sites have come in to catch dissenters while TVs have been fitted with receivers which only get state channels. The ‘Great Firewall’ is supposed to keep harmful influences, like Tibetans and foreign states out in the cold, but like the real wall, it could also keep Chinese citizens locked in and wanting more. You can’t believe you’re a global leader if you can’t even see what’s happening in the rest of the world, and if the ‘most powerful’ nation is so powerful, who’s it hiding from? PHOTOS: Not just in the streets, but online too Chinese security is always watching, V for Venetta style HK protest, kids now have access to the latest technology, micro-blogging is a problem for the ‘Great Firewall’
Expressing resistance
Like the Soviet practice of burning books, attempting to limit artistic expression is seen as key weakness of oppressive regimes, illustrating that resistance has moved on from political activists and into popular culture. And the internet is increasingly becoming a channel through which that expression is shared, creating new heroes and sparking further artistic resistance.
Chinese authorities continue to display a fear of such expression as they arrest Tibetan cultural figures, such as singer and actor Sogtruk Sherab, who was detained in September due to his performances about the hardships Tibetans face under Chinese rule. In August, Chinese authorities also detained Tibetan singers Achock Phuljhung and Chogsel for recording songs praising the Dalai Lama and expressing pride in being Tibetan. As Ai Weiwei has shown, the arts are an avenue which an increasing number of people living under CCP rule are using to express dissatisfaction with the regime and in December, Beijing-based artist Liu Yi began releasing a series of portraits of Tibetans who have self-immolated, showing that Tibetan resistance is crossing ethnic boundaries. The UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression reported in August that the Chinese state is imposing harsh restrictions on Tibetan intellectuals, over 24 of whom have been sentenced in recent years, while around 37 are missing since being detained. Restrictions on the internet, printing, phone lines and sharing photos were cited as examples of how China is breaching international standards on free expression in Tibet.
China is also cracking down on Tibetan language. In January, authorities banned volunteers from teaching Tibetan children their language during winter break in some areas of Ngaba; a move which angered locals who are already unhappy at China’s education policies, which force Tibetans to learn in Chinese. It followed 1,000 students protesting in November when the authorities released a booklet criticising the Tibetan language as ‘irrelevant’. But cracking down on a whole culture is a dangerous business; as China’s opposition to the Lhakar movement also shows, simply the fact of being Tibetan is beginning to make people ‘activists’. If all Tibetans are pushed towards being activists, opposition to China will snowball. But all of these forms of cultural expression have found their way online, and though China can arrest singers, shut cultural institutes and burn books, it can’t burn the internet. Tibetan artists who take a stand may still be jailed, but all the while they know their work is being shared worldwide.
China caught red handed
In January, US Congress filed a report into cyber crime which labeled China ‘the most threatening actor in cyberspace’, and more are speaking out as China’s online victims become tired of the constant hacks and seek to expose what’s happening. One example of a Chinese hack saw New York Times reporters targeted after lifting the lid on the corruption of outgoing Premier Wen Jiabao, and the regime’s denials are starting to wear thin.
The US report said that Chinese state-owned companies employ hackers, and that hacks from China doubled last year, accounting for a third of all hacks worldwide. The US called it ‘cyber Pearl Harbour’, citing the US power grid, transport networks, military and financial systems as plausible targets. Fingers were pointed clearly at the Chinese government over the hacking of Tibet groups in September, when security firm AlienVault noticed intricate similarities in the programming of the PlugX RAT Trojan software and a programme called SockMon. Its programmer, using a directory named ‘Whg’, worked as a ‘virus expert proficient in assembly’ for a company sponsored by the People’s Liberation Army. Security company Symantec also voiced its observations, stating that the hackers who attacked Google in 2009 had listed Tibet groups as their top targets and had carried out hundreds of attacks. They also focused efforts on stealing data from companies who supply parts to defence contractors. Symantec hinted what has long been suspected; that it was likely a well resourced nation state behind the hacker groups. Reports cacluate that China would need 4,000 censors to track Weibo’s 70,000 posts per minute alone, pointing to an automated system to cover all the sites. Wikieaks exposed the US pro-China lobby group CUSEF, showing their directions to create a ‘counter narrative’ to criticism of the occupation of Tibet which “eliminates the emotion from the situation” and “defends and promotes the Chinese position”. They were also planning to introduce text books drafted by the Chinese state into American schools. But the whistle has clearly been blown now, as Citizen Labs finally proved the Chinese state orchestrates the attacks by tracing a malicious email sent to Tibet Action Institute Director Lhadon Tethong back to the Chinese military. China may employ the world’s greatest hackers, but they don’t keep the world’s best secrets. Get more practical tips and advice about staying safe online at www.tibetaction.net
PHOTOS: Sogtruk Sherab, International Mother Language Day celebrated in Golok, Liu Yi’s portraits of self-immolators. See the latest translations of Tibetan poetry, music and art at www.highpeakspureearth.com
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Uprising Day in Edinburgh
By Amie and Philippa, Edinburgh Tibet Society
The bitter Edinburgh winds sent shivers down the spines of protesters, setting a reminder of the sobering reason for our March. As the wind howled across the square where we stood, we knew the turbulence of the weather could only be reflecting the scenes of the crisis in Tibet.The reality of this crisis was made all too real when protesters were called forward to stand with images of Tibetans who had made the ultimate sacrifice for their country and ended their lives in flames. The wind slowed to a quiet murmur as we read out the chilling testimony of Sangay Dolma, a 17 year old nun who self-immolated. The silence echoed an unspoken message, a shared consensus from the crowd; what is happening to the Tibetan people is fundamentally wrong, and the world must know. In an age where free markets have become substitutes for freedom of speech and peace is measured by the state's profit, what shone out from the frosty demonstration was how much we have to learn about peace from the Tibetan martyrs. The Tibetan national anthem broke the silence and blasted a chorus of defiance through the heart of Scotland; it was time for us to speak out. Members of Scottish parliament such as Marco Biagi of the SNP and Alison Johnstone of the Green party had their messages of support heard as we rallied. The cross party group on Tibet stated, “those who have the power to make change in the international community should surely stand up and be counted in solidarity with the people of Tibet, who ask for no more than their right to exist and have a say in the future of their country.'” Above all our speakers aimed to deliver a message of peace that we were all fighting for. This message only amplified once we set off on our March to the Chinese Consulate. With protesters full of passion and energy, we shouted out for a free Tibet to the people of Scotland and demanded that they live with the same rights that we all deserve. Members of the society expressed that the March was both beautiful and shocking. Beautiful to see such dedication, courage, passion, and solidarity people showed on Uprising Day as they united, from all over the UK, for Tibet. Our society felt honored to march along the streets with such inspiring, tenacious people. What shocked us began at the Consulate. We cried out in defiance at the Consulate doors, being ushered to the back of the building by the authorities. It became all too clear that those in the free world must change our perceptions on what we deem violent. The systematic persecution and cultural genocide of Tibetans in their home country arises nothing from the sentiments of our authorities and yet a lone Tibetan protester in Scotland can become branded a criminal if he climbs the gate of the Consulate walls to hang the flag of his nation on their door. However, this is not what alarmed us the most. In the blink of an eye, a Consulate worker emerged from the door, slicing through a Tibetan flag with a butcher’s knife before throwing it carelessly in the bin right in front of our eyes. The Tibetan people, who have had to watch their brothers and sisters suffer through over 60 years of repression had to now witness their national symbol being ripped apart in the 'free world'. It was shocking to see the same worker rip apart images of teenagers who have, and continue to, light themselves on fire for freedom. And most shocking of all was the complete and utter silence. As our demonstrators called for a response, we were sadly met by the steel hard gaze and the anxious barrier of the police. People not capable of looking us in the eye as they shoved images of self immolation back in our faces, only to hit the ground, with nothing but the painful silence.
But over 150 people on the streets of Edinburgh that day proved that we will break the silence. No matter how small we are, we are backed by the truth. And that is all we, and anyone who has ever fought against injustice, ever need. As we were joined by more supporters at the Consulate, the sun began to break free from the clouds and new speakers such as James Moohan of NUS Scotland, Doris Jones of Nations Without States and Fiona Lindsey from Tibetan Torture Survivor Program illuminated the reason we stood there. We will live to see the day when tortured prisoners, jailed for practicing their religion, speaking their language, listening to their anthem, daring to hold a picture of the Dalai Lama, will be free. We will live to see the day when people no longer douse themselves in petrol and give their lives to the flames for basic human rights. We will live to see a free Tibet. There will be an end to the unjust occupation of an independent nation. Because in the end, as we have seen as far back as history will take us, freedom always comes. In times like these, we must remember to not lose hope. Howard Zinn said “to be hopeful in bad times is not just foolishly romantic. It is based on the fact that human history is a history not only of cruelty, but also of compassion, sacrifice, courage, kindness... This gives us the energy to act, and at least the possibility of sending this spinning top of a world in a different direction.” This is the spirit of Edinburgh Tibet Society; of a team that will make sure the cries of Tibetan martyrs are the winds we felt howling, their courage is the sun behind the clouds. Tibet WILL be free.
ACT NOW! Edinburgh Tibet Society is a great example of how a dynamic group of students can make a
real difference. If you want to start a group, contact info@sftuk.org for a uni pack and DVD.
PHOTOS: Rally at the Mound, Edinburgh, a Tibetan activist gets past the Consulate gates to raise the flag in Chinese territory, covering the gates of the Consulate with images of Tibetan martyrs. In Scotland? email tibsoc@gmail.com
Fighting for freedom
Self-immolation has stirred up a lot of debate in the movement about the big questions; autonomy and independence, violence and non-violence, whether change will be led by Western governments or Tibetans themselves. One prominent advocate of Tibetan independence, Tenzin Tsundue, gave a recent interview to citizen journalist Ashim Sunam, abridged here.
Since 2009, more than 100 Tibetans have set themselves on fire. Is this Tibet's way of pressurising the Chinese government? Does it guarantee success for Tibet? The Tibetan self-immolations are a unique response by the people of Tibet, which is deeply spiritual, based on Buddhist practice of compassion and altruism, shaped by Tibetan tradition of warriorship. Unlike the violence that is prevalent around the world, state or organisational terrorism, Tibetans offer their lives in this most brutal fiery death. Like all acts of resistance, strength lies in the brutal insistence on truth, and speaking to the conscience of the enemy. No methods of resistance guarantee success, only non-violence can, even when you fail politically. The Chinese are considering self immolations as a criminal act and are arresting friends of the immolators. Will the Tibetans ever stop such acts before attaining independence? The occupation forces do everything to defend their power and control; the British used to criminalise Indian freedom fighters' acts of dissent, including the Salt Satyagraha movement. The Tibetan self-immolations expose Chinese repression. China has not only occupied Tibet, but the ever expanding Chinese production empire now needs Tibetan land, animals, rivers and as they take them away, they try to suppress Tibetan voices. When a rape victim fights back for survival do you ask the victim to stop fighting or try to stop the criminal from perpetrating the violence? The Tibetans for a long time have been fighting peacefully; still the Chinese government is not listening to your demands. Will this increase the chances of the movement becoming violent? Freedom is never given, it’s always fought for and constantly protected. I have never believed that the power hungry Chinese despots would relent one day. The Chinese dictators are taking advantage of the dictatorship in making as much money as they can while they are in power. They know the regime is not lasting long. Like in Tibet, Chinese people's struggle for freedom and democracy is also becoming more aggressive and confrontational. Many claim that the future of Tibet is uncertain after His Holiness the Dalai Lama renounced political authority. So, how important is the current phase of the movement? The present phase of the Tibetan freedom movement is crucial as our Government in Exile runs with complete political authority after His Holiness the Dalai Lama renounced his political authority in 2011. The struggle must gather strength and become self-reliant. We all believe that we will be able to return to Tibet during the life-time of His Holiness. If it doesn't work out like that, the Tibetan struggle is likely to become more aggressive and chart different paths which will challenge China as never before. Why have many countries urged China to talk to Dalai Lama but not supported Tibetan independence? Asking China to talk to the Dalai Lama is small politics to taunt the Chinese dictators from whom they want better trade deals. Not supporting Independence of Tibet is to keep alive their business interests in China. None of the Western governments at the moment would want Independence of Tibet, which may inspire Mongolians and the people of the East Turkistan’s unity and independence. These three occupied countries put together make half of China's land mass. Industries of the world are able to make cheap ‘Made in China’ products by partly draining natural resources from these occupied countries and by slave labouring the Chinese people. Which country would want to disturb this treasure house? Are you ready to compromise on your demands or attaining Tibetan Independence is an ultimate goal of the movement? Like all 206 independent countries in the world, our dream for Independence is simple. Only an independent Tibet can truly guarantee the survival of the Tibetan nation. Why should our dreams be smaller and others’ bigger? We know the Chinese empire is once again crumbling, this time under the pressure of globalisation. We will return home to a free Tibet soon.
His Holiness recommends SFT
Whatever side of the debate you’re on when it comes to supporting Tibetan independence or the ‘middle way’, respect for His Holiness the Dalai Lama resonates with Tibetans and supporters. So when His Holiness recommended that students join SFT trainings in October, it was picked up by a lot of young Tibetans and supporters. When asked what students should do for Tibet, he said "firstly, student org here… (whispers to translator, who says "Students for a Free Tibet") yes; it's quite active here and now I think in some European countries also it started and that's very good. So firstly make more awareness for the true situation, that's I think very important."
PHOTOS: Tenzin Tsundue, Tibetans clash with security over the self-immolation of Dorjee Rinchen, protest in Ba Country, August, His Holiness. YOU can get trained up by SFT at the week-long Action Camp in Germany from 7th August; contact info@sftuk.org to register
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Lama Jigme
A history of heroism
Jigme Gyatso, also known as ‘Labrang Jigme’ and ‘Akhu Jigme’, is one of the modern heroes of the Tibetan resistance, currently suffering a fourth period of detention. His bravery in sharing a YouTube video testimony about the torture he suffered, knowing he would likely be re-arrested, and his continuing resistance have marked him out as a threat to the Chinese regime. His family received an ‘arrest notification’ stating that he was ‘suspected of instigating separatism’ and that he would therefore be arrested. Though it said it was a notification of an arrest due to take place on 15th January, the family only received the letter after the arrest, in February. Harassed by the Chinese state since his meeting with the UN’s Special Rapporteur on Torture in 2005, Jigme Gyatso continues to challenge his jailers. Today, he is isolated from others, denied medical treatment and only rarely allowed visitors. No charges have been put against him. A little more was revealed in August when his brother Sonam Tsering was able to visit him and wrote this account:
“I went to the local Security Bureau to request to be able to visit my younger brother, Lama Jigme. I had some food to give to him, and I was finally given permission…Three police officers took me to a hotel to meet Lama Jigme. After entering the room I asked my brother about his health, he said that he was not in a good state. Subsequently, Lama Jigme asked the police officers a few questions: ‘Why did you bring me here? Isn’t it just to get some food? What are you (pointing at the policemen) planning to do?’ One police officer replied that the reason ‘was just to receive food’. Lama Jigme said ‘I have nothing to say. If this is really just to bring me some food, then just put the food down and take (my brother) back. But if he came to visit me, why do you need to film and take photos of a private meeting? Yesterday, I said that I was not feeling well, so you invited a doctor to see me. You videotaped and photographed the whole examination, but in the end I did not even receive a single drop of medicine. Today, my older brother is coming to see me and you are playing an old trick. You want to publicise this visual material and then claim that Jigme is in a good state, that he is well taken care of and even allowed to meet his relatives, don’t you? I am telling you, I don’t need anyone bringing me food, I don’t need my brother to visit me, I also don’t want to live in a hotel. If you think that I am a criminal, send me to court for a trial. If I really committed a crime, well then I will gladly accept my sentence, even if it is the death sentence. If I then had the privilege to receive my brother’s visit, even taste a bit of delicious homemade food, and even stay in a hotel, well then you would not have to worry about me, it would relieve you from the burden of having to keep me in custody. It has already been two months and 15 days and you have not obtained any accusations against me. You have already taken all files and computer hard drives from my home. You know what I have written, what I have read… But the problem is that if a singer uses words in his lyrics that are related to sun (Chinese officials believe ‘sun’ refers to the Dalai Lama), moon, stars, the snow mountain or words related to unity etc, you will arrest him or her immediately. What regulations in your constitution disallow the usage of these words? You say that we are not allowed to pray to His Holiness the Dalai Lama, but there are no Tibetans that don’t have faith in the Dalai Lama and Panchen Lama. If you find a Tibetan who does not have faith in the Dalai Lama and Panchen Lama, he must be the same as you, a blind follower of the CCP... If you still want me to talk to my brother, well then I want to tell my brother to help me to appeal’. Lama Jigme turned his head towards me and said, ‘Go lodge an appeal for me… Find me a good lawyer and sue these policemen! I am a victim. But you don’t need to suffer from the same persecution (as I have).’ As I stood next to and heard my younger brother saying these things, I felt like crying but had no tears. Every single time that I had gone to the Security Bureau I had told the police my opinion and asked them to tell me what crimes my brother had committed. They never gave me an explicit response. My brother is innocent, I told the police to let him go immediately. I said that I would bring this case to the county level, prefectural level, provincial level, yes even to the attention of the central government. You can’t just imprison a person for no reason for over 70 days. My brother has already been arrested 4 times. Every time, he would disappear without a word or trace and then after a while he would be let go without any charges. When we met, Lama Jigme expressed his opinions clearly; this made the police officers angry, they told me to take the food back. A few people escorted me out of the hotel.”
The UN’s Special Rapporteur commented on Lama Jigme’s former detention; "since he has been convicted of a political crime, possibly on the basis of information extracted by torture, the Special Rapporteur appeals to the Government that he be released." But China is playing for time, knowing Lama Jigme, as a leader in the community, could be more dangerous to them free. As long as China has control of Tibet, it will harass Tibetan heroes, but the question is whether Chinese power or Tibetan resistance will last longer; Jigme Gyatso is showing that the latter is the strongest force in Tibet. PHOTOS: Lama Jigme before his arrest, examples of the extent of army presence in Tibet today. Read more about Jigme Gyatso and other Tibetan heroes at www.freetibetanheroes.org
Shallman’s videos: http://bit.ly/XFC3f2
SFT UK NOTICE BOARD SFTUK 7
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FROM THE FLAMES
Beloved children of the Snow Lion, sons and daughters of the Land of Snows, warriors of the snow mountain, don’t forget your are Tibetans -Sangay Dolma
May the Tibetan people prevail for tens of thousands of years -Wenchen Kyi Today I am en ding my life w ith ease by offering butter lamps for all th ose Tibetans who ha ve set themselv es on fire for the cause of Tibet -Tulku Athup
I want to offer my life and body. It is for the long life of lea der of the heaven an d earth His Holiness the Dalai Lama an d all other spiritual lea ders, I offer my lif e and body as mandala to them; may the merit and power of this offering enable al l sentient beings at tain the Buddhaho od in future. -Sopa rinpoche
Tibet needs freedo m and independence. Rele ase Panchen and let the Dalai Lam a return home. I self-immolate to pr otest against the Chinese governmen t! Father, please don't be dishearten ed because of me. I follow the Buddha and Goodness. M y wish is that six m illion Tibetans wi ll learn their mother tongue, wear Tibetan clothes an d be united. -Nyankar Tashi.
For equality of nationalities, freedom of Tibet, promotion of Tibetan language, and for His Holiness the Dalai Lama to return, I’ve decided to self-immolate. -Kelsang Jinpa s Without the return of Hi to ma Holiness the Dalai La ce Tibet there is no differen g in dy d an g between livin ab Ky in dr -Tam
a nd up the pain e k ta to g n I fall I am willi g beings. If in v li ll a of ist Party sufferings the Commun of d n a h e e h ave at th on't resist. W . My d e s a le p , a of Chin r culture and learn ou ed it n u e b to ed by my be dishearten 't on d , y il fam tion. self-immola -Rechok
I have a wish, people from all the three regions of Tibet get united, stop infighting and disputes, only then our wishes will come true. -Lobsang Gedun
I can’t live to wait in vain, when I think of the plight of the khenpos and monks, what is the use of worrying? Let’s rise up! -Tenzin Phuntsok
For the restoration of freedom in Tibet and world pe ace, both of us in sound mind, are se tting ourselves on fire. The Tibeta n people’s suffering due to de nial of freedom is far greater that the tragedy of setting our bodies on fire. -Choephag Kyab & Sonam
on earth, peace prevails at th pe ho e th With rn of His ing for the retu With the yearn land, s hi alai Lama to I set my Holiness the D s, an d by Tibet le ru be to et ib For T light. an offering of body on fire as ng Thar di am -T
We want to tell all the T ibetan youth swear to you , rself, never fi ght against other, amon each g Tibetans, we h united and protect our ra ave to be ce. -Tenzin Ked up
(The CCP) defam es the Dalai Lama and when anyone does not recognize Tibe t as part of China, they will disappear or be assassinated. They don't care about Tibetans and in or der to let the world know about the re al situation in Ti bet, we have to radicalize our peaceful action, voice out Tibetan indepe ndence by lightin g up our bodies. -Gudup
Prayers for world peace and happin ess! To ensure His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s return to Tibet, do not indulg e in slaughtering and trading of animals, do not steal, Speak Tibetan , do not fight, Bearing all sufferings of the sentient beings on myself, Do not resist by fighting if I get into Chines e hands alive, Be united, Study Tibetan culture, On fire I burn, do not worry my family. -Rikyo
Notes from some of those who have self-immolated