TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2012
I N T E R N AT I O N A L
Wave of Tibet immolations among history’s biggest BEIJING: Dozens of Tibetans have set themselves on fire over the past year to protest Chinese rule, sometimes drinking kerosene to make the flames explode from within, in one of the biggest waves of political self-immolations in recent history. But the stunning protests are going largely unnoticed in the wider world - due in part to a smothering Chinese security crackdown in the region that prevents journalists from covering them. While a single fruit seller in Tunisia who lit himself on fire in December 2010 is credited with igniting the Arab Spring democracy movement, the Tibetan self-immolations have so far failed to prompt the changes the protesters demand: an end to government interference in their religion and a return of the exiled Dalai Lama. Still, experts describe self-immolations as, historically, a powerful form of protest, and the ones in Tibet might yet lead to some broader uprising or stir greater international pressure on Beijing. The Tibetan protesters have burned themselves in market places, main streets, military camps and other symbols of government authority in western China, mostly in a single remote county. Most of the protesters have been members of the Buddhist clergy. The latest were two monks, aged 21 and 22, on Friday. “In scale, this is one of the biggest waves of self-immolation in the last six decades,” said Oxford University sociologist Michael Biggs, who studies politically driven suicides.
“Particularly that it’s in one small area of China and in one small ethnic group, definitely, in terms of the intensity compared to the population, it seems to be much greater.” The pace of 32 self-immolations in little more than a year is more rapid than the suicide-by-fire protests that punctuated the Vietnam War and the pro-democracy movement in South Korea, experts say. It is surpassed only by the more than 100 students in India who burned themselves to protest a caste-based affirmative action proposal in 1990, Biggs said. Shocking to most people’s sensibilities, selfimmolation is calculated, desperate and powerful, Biggs and other experts say. Its effects can be farreaching, evoking sympathy in people unrelated to the cause and calling the like-minded to action. For Buddhists, as most Tibetans are, burning the body is seen as a selfless act of sacrifice, especially in defense of religion, and it carries a resonant history. In the 6th century, the Chinese monk, Dazhi, used a red-hot iron and a knife to burn and then peel the flesh from an arm then removed the bones and set them on fire to protest limits on the Buddhist community ordered by a Sui dynasty emperor, said James Benn, author of “Burning for the Buddha,” a book about Buddhist self-immolation. Sometimes the distinction is blurry between political protest and suicide. In Afghanistan, for example, self-immolation is a common way for
women to commit suicide. Many self-immolations have been reported in Tunisia since fruit seller Mohammed Bouazizi’s act, but experts say most of them were likely suicides for personal reasons, not protests. As a modern protest tactic, fiery suicide was effectively invented by the Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Quang Duc, who sat in a lotus position on a busy Saigon street in 1963, had other monks pour gasoline on him, then struck a match. Reporters had been called beforehand. The monk was protesting the South Vietnamese government’s discrimination against Buddhists and his act touched off anti-war sentiments in America and undermined support for the US-backed regime. “When someone stands up to violence in such a courageous way, a force for change is released,” Vietnamese monk Thich Nhat Hanh later wrote about Duc’s immolation in a book about nonviolent social change. “Accepting the most extreme kind of pain, he lit a fire in the hearts of people around the world.” So far, the Tibetan protesters have failed to get what they want. Each immolation has prompted authorities to heighten the security that has smothered the area since an uprising against Chinese rule in 2008. The security cordon has kept journalists out. Searches of Tibetans and Internet and mobile phone service suspensions keep the message from spreading.
Without the graphic images of a person ablaze, the immolations have yet to produce an iconic symbol the world can latch onto. Also, China’s emergence as the world’s second-largest economy and its growing diplomatic clout make it less likely that foreign governments throw any substantial weight for the Tibetan cause. “There’s a real sense that Thich Quang Duc and the Buddhist monks who set themselves on fire in Saigon in 1963 were able to change American foreign policy and therefore bring down the government in South Vietnam,” Biggs said. “But of course, there’s no leverage that anybody in the West has over China that is comparable.” The protests are unlikely to sway a Chinese population that has come to associate the tactic with the banned Falun Gong spiritual movement after five of its members set themselves on fire on Tiananmen Square in 2001. China used the event in which a woman and her 12-year-old daughter died - to support its claim that Falun Gong is an “evil cult” and justify a brutal crackdown. The Chinese public, in any case, has little sympathy for Tibetan appeals. Many in the Han Chinese majority adhere to the government’s position that Tibetan protesters want to split Tibet from China. Still, in the Tibetan areas, the immolations have often been followed by mass demonstrations underscoring the power the protest has in galvanizing a community.—AP
ASEAN welcomes Myanmar vote Regional summit begins today PHNOM PENH: Asian foreign ministers yesterday welcomed Myanmar’s “orderly” elections as they met ahead of a regional summit that will also be dominated by North Korea’s planned rocket launch and maritime disputes. Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) foreign ministers held talks in Phnom Penh after historic by-elections in Myanmar appeared to give opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi her first seat in parliament.
ing, Myanmar’s Wunna Maung Lwin told his counterparts the vote had “gone rather smoothly” and should help the country normalise its international relations, Surin said. Suu Kyi hailed a “victory of the people” but warned against triumphalism after her apparent win in elections seen as a test of the regime’s reforms. Over the past 12 months Myanmar’s quasi-civilian government, led by President Thein Sein, has freed hundreds of
PHNOM PENH: ASEAN foreign ministers pose after signing documents during a ceremony on the sidelines of the 20th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Phnom Penh yesterday. Asian foreign ministers yesterday welcomed Myanmar’s “orderly” elections as they met ahead of a regional summit that will also be dominated by North Korea’s planned rocket launch and maritime disputes. — AFP
Poll observers from ASEAN’s current chair Cambodia said the vote was “conducted in a free, fair and transparent manner”. “Despite complaints of irregularities and intimidation, this delegation did not observe any incidents that might have affected the process or the results of the by-elections,” they said in a statement. ASEAN Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan said the vote should contribute to the “reintegration of Myanmar into the global community”, a reference to the possible lifting of Western sanctions. During the foreign ministers’ meet-
political prisoners, eased media restrictions and welcomed the opposition back to the political fold. At the last ASEAN summit in November, the country was rewarded for its efforts by being promised the bloc’s chairmanship in 2014. Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa welcomed the by-elections as “an opportunity for Myanmar to make the reform process even more irreversible”. Philippine Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario said they were a “vindication of the global community that believed that Myanmar could pursue this democratisation track effec-
tively”. The European Union has indicated it is looking at easing sanctions imposed on Myanmar in the mid-1990s over the regime’s long history of human rights abuses, and foreign investors are lining up to do business in the country. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, speaking to reporters in Turkey, said Sunday the elections were “heartening” but urged the government to improve transparency and deal with polling irregularities. “It is too early to know what the progress of recent months means and whether it will be sustained,” she said. Suu Kyi herself said ahead of the polls that they could not be considered genuinely democratic due to widespread problems such as intimidation of voters. ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam-a grouping of nearly 600 million people of hugely disparate economic, development and political systems. Del Rosario said the ministers spoke with one voice against North Korea’s planned rocket launch, which Pyongyang describes as a bid to send a satellite into orbit but which the United States and others see as a missile test. The Philippines-which lies beneath the rocket’s proposed flight path-has lodged formal protests with Pyongyang’s representatives at the United Nations, in China and at ASEAN. “I think the countries that spoke on the topic... were all of the opinion that we should be discouraging (North Korea) from undertaking that launch,” Del Rosario said. ASEAN’s two-day summit begins today. The bloc has often been dismissed as a talking shop but it has assumed new strategic importance in light of Washington’s foreign policy “pivot” to Asia and the economic rise of China in recent years. Chinese President Hu Jintao visited Phnom Penh on the eve of the summit, amid tensions between Beijing and several ASEAN member states over rival territorial claims in the potentially resource-rich South China Sea. The Philippines, which has recently expanded military ties with its treaty ally the United States, has joined Vietnam in accusing China of taking an increasingly aggressive posture in recent years. But Del Rosario said a proposed Code of Conduct could be finalised this year, a decade after China and ASEAN agreed to craft a set of rules to avoid small incidents escalating into major conflicts.—AFP
Parties kept spirits high on blaze-hit cruise ship SANDAKAN: The smell of smoke spread fear on the cruise ship Azamara Quest, whose passengers put on life vests and gathered for roll call thinking of a deadly capsizing of another luxury vessel. But for most of the 48 hours it took the fire-damaged ship to lumber into a Malaysian port, they were partying more than panicking. Passengers said the hardworking crew who quickly put out an engine-room fire Friday night kept their spirits buoyant, even as they suffered without air conditioning in sweltering heat. They enjoyed barbecues on the deck and free drinks. After the ship carrying 1,000 people reached land, its passengers - including many retired vacationers from North America and Europe voiced relief yesterday that their experience hadn’t been as harrowing as what happened to other accident-hit cruise liners this year. “Everybody was joyous that they were alive,” said Diane Becker Krasnick of St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands. She was celebrating her 40th wedding anniversary with her husband, Mark. “It was unfortunate, but the crew was totally, utterly amazing, taking care of us, making sure we were safe, pulling double duty,” Krasnick said. “I would still highly recommend the Azamara.” The ship’s tribulations started a day after it wrapped up a port call in Manila during a 17-day Southeast Asian cruise. Flames engulfed one of its engine rooms Friday night, injuring five crew members who suffered smoke inhalation. Dorothy Wood of Virginia Beach, Virginia, said
she was having soup at a dining hall when everyone noticed smoke. “I was petrified. I had to cover my face with a napk in and go through the smoke,” the 74-year old said at a hotel in Sandakan, where the Azamara Quest docked late Sunday. “I never thought I would be afraid to die, but I was very much afraid. But I didn’t tell anyone,” she said, laughing. She praised Finnish captain Leif Karlsson and his crew, saying “there was such
a sense of family with the passengers.” Many passengers said they remained calm while donning life vests and heading to the Azamara Quest’s casino and cabaret lounge for a roll call. They were informed there had been an electrical fire, but it was immediately extinguished. Ship engineers toiled throughout the next day, restoring electricity, running water and plumbing within hours before finally re-establishing propulsion Saturday night.—AP
SANDAKAN: A man stands on the deck under a lifeboat on the stricken cruise ship Azamara Quest as it sits tied up at the port in Sandakan, Malaysia, yesterday. The Azamara Quest was stranded off the southern Philippines with 1,000 people aboard after flames engulfed one of its engine rooms Friday, injuring five crew members. — AP
NADI: Floodwaters inundate the tourist town of Nadi on the island of Viti Levu yesterday as Fiji braced for gale force winds which were expected to intensify into a tropical cyclone. A state of emergency was declared in the South Pacific nation as flash floods claimed at least three lives and forced 8,000 people to seek refuge in evacuation centres. — AFP
Flood-ravaged Fiji struggles as cyclone bears down NADI: Fiji struggled yesterday with devastating floods that have brought the country and its tourist industry to a standstill as authorities warned that conditions could worsen with a cyclone bearing down. Cyclone Daphne is expected to compound the damage in the South Pacific nation, where a state of emergency is in force and flash floods have claimed at least three lives and forced 8,000 people to seek refuge in evacuation centres. Fiji has “had a bashing”, permanent secretary of information Sharon Smith Johns said, with water and power supplies cut in most areas, many roads closed and food supplies dwindling. Thousands of tourists staying in Fiji’s popular resorts were forced to contend with limited services as they waited for flood waters to recede enough to get to the airport, where they faced chaotic scenes. “The information we’ve been given has been terrible. They say flights are on but you turn up and they’ve been cancelled,” said Dorothy May Pechalaiya, whose flight back to London was delayed from Sunday until at least today. “I had to sleep on a bench (at the airport) last night and I’m going to have to do it again tonight, and I’m disabled,” she added, pointing to her walking stick. “I’m really angry about the way we’ve been treated.” Davendra Singh said he had been forced to close his car rental business at Nadi airport, about two hours 30 minutes drive from Fiji’s capital Suva, as he did not want vehicles wrecked in the dangerous driving conditions. “This was supposed to be a busy week because we’ve got Easter coming up, lots of group bookings and tours. We’ve cancelled all that and have to see what happens with the cyclone now.” The Fiji Meteorological Service warned of an approaching cyclone and said more flood-
ing on the main island of Viti Levu, where both Suva and Nadi are located, was expected. It forecast “damaging gale-force winds” with gusts up to 110 kilometres (68 miles) per hour and “severe flooding of major rivers, streams and low-lying areas including sea flooding of low-lying coastal areas”. A government spokesman said the situation was worse than January floods in which 11 people died, with twice as much rainwater falling in half as much time. However, late yesterday the government lifted its embargo on airlines carrying people into the country, the national carrier Air Pacific advised. A number of empty planes have already flown in to ferry tourists out. “This is very bad for Fiji, it will take a long time to fix up and get the tourists back,” said Nadi taxi driver Mohammad Yakub. He said his family was surviving on tinned food as all the crops in his small plot of land had been destroyed and his local market was unlikely to reopen for weeks. Although Fiji has not called for international assistance, Australia and New Zealand said they were ready to help. The regional powers have had a fractured relationship with Fiji since naval officer Voreque Bainimarama seized control in a 2006 military coup. New Zealand Prime Minister John Key said they would work with non-government agencies rather than Bainimarama’s regime. “Typically what we’ve done in the past is give the resources to a non-government organisation on the ground we trust, say the Red Cross, rather than give it to the government to administer,” he told Radio Live. Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr said Canberra was ready to provide up to Aus$1 million (US$1.04 million) to support disaster relief efforts while Qantas promised to put on extra services to help
‘Dead’ Australian fights for life in hospital MELBOURNE: An investigation was under way yesterday after a man declared dead by Australian paramedics following a car crash was found to be alive around an hour later. The driver was trapped upside down in the wreckage of a Porsche in a Melbourne suburb and was pronounced dead after being treated at the scene. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation said after ambulances left the man remained in the car for up to an hour as police began their investigations. It was only when State Emergency Service volunteers finally began the process of removing what they thought was a corpse that they discovered a “feeble pulse”.
An ambulance was rushed back to the crash site and the 30-year-old was taken to hospital in a critical condition. Ambulance Victoria said it was investigating the bungle with the two paramedics involved traumatised by their mistake. “These are two very experienced paramedics but obviously this has been an error and we will work with them through that,” said spokesman Simon Thomson. He added that the driver had horrific facial injuries and paramedics were confronted with a challenging scene but would not comment on whether their error compromised his survival chances. — AFP