Two Songs About Tibetan Unity: "Mentally Return" and "The Sound of Unity"

High Peaks Pure Earth has translated two songs about Tibetan unity. "Mentally Return" was first performed in Rebkong in 2007 for the Losar (Tibetan New Year) outdoor performance by the giant of Tibetan music today, Yadong, and his three most well-known students, Kunga, Tsewang and Gangshung. "The Sound of Unity" is new from July 2010 and it is performed by the Amdo singer Sherten, also a big name in contemporary Tibetan music.

Both songs share the same topic of unity amongst Tibetans but are markedly different in style. Whilst these two songs indicate that Tibetan identity and unity amongst all Tibetans were themes in songs both before and after the turbulent year for Tibetans with the protests of 2008, "Mentally Return" is the more cautious of the two songs in terms of the way the messages of the song are conveyed and the lyrics are arguably even more powerful and poetic in their subtlety. For example, in "Mentally Return", the word "Tibet" (in Tibetan, bod) is never mentioned and instead, Tibet is referred to as the "bountiful land on the roof of the world" or the "Land of Snows". The metaphor of the Tibetan circle dance is used to indicate unity and Tibet is also called both the fatherland and the mother - a place of comfort with the feeling of home. Tellingly, the singers are also from various parts of this "bountiful land", Yadong, Kunga and Tsewang are from Kham and Gangshuk is from Amdo. Their places of origin in themselves are at odds with the map - none of them are from the place marked today as "Tibet" (Xizang in Chinese, known by Tibetans as U-Tsang, central Tibet).

On the other hand, Sherten's 2010 song "The Sound of Unity" directly addresses "Tibetans" and boldly uses politically loaded phrases and words such as "three provinces", "nation" and "freedom" - all studiously avoided by "Mentally Return" but implied nonetheless. Whereas "Mentally Return" inferred a unity that was related to an inner geography, "The Sound of Unity" literally calls on Tibetans traditionally of all three provinces Amdo, Kham and U-Tsang to unite and to draw strength from each other.

The turbulent events of 2008 have clearly made a direct impact on the cultural production of Tibetans and in particular with Tibetan artists and singers. One example is the CD "Torture Without Trace" by another Amdo singer Tashi Dhondup" that High Peaks Pure Earth featured in March 2010 and for which he received a 15 month re-education through labour prison sentence.

There is much more that can be said about these two songs and High Peaks Pure Earth invites readers to contribute thoughts and analysis. We also apologise for the poor picture quality of Sherten's music video. If any reader knows of a better quality video online, please let us know. Below are the music videos and the translated lyrics:



Lyrics: Drug Gyal
Tune: Tashi Dorje
Singers: Yadong, Gangzhung, Kunga and Tsewang
Director: Tharchin
Dancers: Qinghai Nationalities Dance Troupe

Its snow-capped mountains are the heavenly ramparts
Its pure blue rivers are the shimmering ornaments of the sun and the moon
Its vast meadows and pastures are the beds of the stars
This holy land situated close to zenith of the sky
This bountiful land on the roof of the world
Are these are our fatherland, the Land of Snows!

Oh Great Mother, the Land of Snows
I’ve come for the cosy warmth of your loving care
And today I sing a song in your lap

Oh great Mother, the Land of Snows
This is a song of auspiciousness taught by you
This is a gift for having traversed across my fatherland!

The six migratory beings are our kind parents
Non-violence and peace are our mental wealth
Bravery, wisdom and heroism are the strength of our heart
The nationality who inhabit this Land of Snows
The first people to settle here and exercise ownership
Are us, the ruddy faced Tibetans of the Land of Snows

Oh Tibetan brothers and sisters
We’ve come missing your profound love and friendship
Today, in your presence we dance in joy!

Oh Tibetan brothers and sisters
This is the circle dance of unity taught by you
This is a gift to celebrate the reunion of brethrens

Oh Tibetan brothers and sisters
Oh Tibetan brothers and sisters
This is the circle dance of unity taught by you

This is a gift to celebrate the reunion of brethrens
This is a gift to celebrate the reunion of brethrens
This is a gift to celebrate the reunion of brethrens

Amdo, Kham and U-Tsang all belong to the same family
We have a common destiny

Let’s all blossom together like flowers
Hand in hand in harmony

Hand in hand in harmony
Let’s step forwards

If you care about the future of our nationality
All three provinces should unite

Amdo, Kham and U-Tsang all belong to the same family
We have a common destiny

Tibetans of the land of snows
Unite as one!

Amdo, Kham and U-Tsang all belong to the same family
We have a common destiny

Hand in hand in harmony
Let’s step forwards

"The Sound of Unity"

Lyrics: Taglha Gye
Music: Dubey
Singer: Sherten

If we care about the well-being and the future of our nationality who are in despair
People from Amdo, Kham and U-Tsang, hold hands together in harmony, unite as one!

O Tibetans!
Unite, unite
If you think of the sadness on the face of your father

O Tibetans!
Unite, unite
If you think of the tears from the heart of your mother

O Tibetans!
Unite, unite
Tibetans of the Land of Snows unite

We are the kin of the same parentage
We are the inheritors of a nation
O ruddy faced Tibetans

O Tibetans!
Unite, unite
If you think of the months and years of joys and sorrows

O Tibetans!
Unite, unite
Tibetans from all parts of the high plateau unite

O Tibetans!
Unite, unite
If you think of the vista of the Land of Snows

O Tibetans!
Unite, unite
Kindred, old or young, unite

We are the keepers of herds in the nomadic lands of the upper reaches
We are the farmers in the valleys of the low lying lands
O ruddy faced Tibetans

O Tibetans!
Unite, unite
If you think of our destiny of tears and laughter

O Tibetans!
Unite, unite
Three provinces unite

O Tibetans!
Unite, unite
If you think of the peace and happiness of a life of freedom

O Tibetans!
Unite, unite
Young men and women unite

We are the messengers of the new era
We are the future inheritors of the land surrounded by snowy ranges
O ruddy faced Tibetans

What’s going on in the Tibetan Blogosphere? Ask Dechen Pemba

A Tibetan netizen in her own right, Dechen Pemba, publisher of High Peaks Pure Earth (the remarkable blog that translates the writings of Tibetans living in Tibet and China) provides insight into the importance and the vulnerabilities of the Tibetan blogosphere in her following post:

The Virtual Sweet Tea House: An Overview of the Tibetan Cyberspace

As a place to meet, share and exchange, the Tibetan blogosphere has created opportunities for Tibetan netizens that would be unimaginable in the offline world. Keeping in mind the state of internet censorship in the People’s Republic of China today, these new spaces can be seen as new outlets but also as new areas involving personal risk. Tibetan cyberspace has opened up a new opportunity for expression, which has also brought new risks to this community.

There are several blog-hosting sites, both Tibetan and Chinese, that are favoured by Tibetans in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) today. One of the of the most popular Chinese language sites is called Tibetan Culture Net or simply TibetCul. TibetCul was started by two brothers, Wangchuk Tseten and Tsewang Norbu, and their head office is in Lanzhou, capital of Gansu Province. According to Alexa, the web Information Company, TibetCul receives over 400,000 hits every month. TibetCul is primarily a news and blog-hosting site but there are many different sections on the site related to Tibetan music, literature, films and travel. There is a BBS forum (bulletin board) and there is even a section dedicated to “overseas Tibetans”.

For all Tibet related news, blogs and cultural activities, TibetCul is an invaluable resource and source of information. Many posts translated into English by High Peaks Pure Earth come from TibetCul, such as the translation of the popular Tibetan hip-hop song “New Generation” by Green Dragon that was first featured on the group’s TibetCul blog in February 2010 in which a gang of Amdo rappers boldly proclaimed:

“The new generation has a resource called youth
The new generation has a pride called confidence
The new generation has an appearance called playfulness
The new generation has a temptation called freedom”

In a similar surge of pride in Tibetan identity that featured on Tibetan blogs post-2008, TibetCul blogs featured many poems and prose articles with the title “I Am Tibetan” and new posts are being written even today.

Heated discussions and debate take place on TibetCul every day about all matters of concern to Tibetans. One major example would be the online vilification of well-known Tibetan singer Lobsang Dondrup following photos posted on blogs of him and his wife both wearing fur at their wedding ceremony in early 2009. The photos were quickly re-posted across many blogs, incurring the wrath of angry Tibetan netizens and comments criticising the couple flooded the internet forums both in Tibetan and Chinese. This must all be seen in context, in 2006, after the Dalai Lama’s injunction against the wearing of animal fur, a wave of fur burning protests took place in Amdo and Kham. Hence the netizens anger and loathing for the couple. Shortly after, Lobsang Dondrup posted an apology online through his friend’s TibetCul blog.

The above observations on TibetCul demonstrate the nature of cyberspace in the ability to bring people together in discussion and debate and also the ability for the online content to transcend national borders, “New Generation” has gone on to become a popular song amongst Tibetans all over the world and the “I Am Tibetan” poetry and spirit has sparked Tibetan exile groups to hold events to amplify voices from Tibet.

In a paper from 2004, Tibetan scholar Tashi Rabgey referred to the Lhasa tradition of the Sweet Tea House: “Throughout the 1980s, sweet tea houses had served as important gathering places for Tibetans to exchange news, air opinions and discuss ideas.” However, “with the tightening of political controls in the early 1990s [...] this unusual space of lively, open debate was brought to an end through constant surveillance.” The new virtual Sweet Tea House contains Tibetans who are literate in many languages but mainly in Tibetan, Chinese and English and Tibetans from Central Tibet, Kham, Amdo, India, USA and beyond, all in contact and dialogue.

Whilst the potential for contact and dialogue in the Tibetan cyberspace is great, control of the internet and the politicisation of the blog content poses difficulties and risks. Monitoring Tibetan blogs reveals that throughout the year, at times deemed “sensitive” by the Chinese government, Tibetan blog-hosting sites will suddenly with no explanation or prior warning either be taken offline or be offline “for maintenance”. This happens typically for Tibetan blogs around the time of March 10, the anniversary of the Tibetan uprising against Chinese rule in 1959. See this link for an example of TibetCul suddenly disappearing offline and this link for Tibetan-language blogs being taken offline.

Similarly, individual bloggers are in danger of being targeted by the state for blog content deemed to be dubious. The most famous example is the Tibetan poet, writer and blogger, Woeser, who was writing two blogs, one on TibetCul and another on a Chinese blog hosting site but both of which were suddenly shut down on 28 July 2006. Woeser then had no choice but to start a new blog on a server hosted outside the PRC but has since faced a new set of problems such as server cyber-attacks by Chinese nationalists, both to her blogs and her Skype accounts.

Tibetan language blog-hosting sites have been even more vulnerable than TibetCul and two previously very popular sites have been inaccessible since 2009, http://tibettl.com/ and http://www.tibetabc.cn/ The latter was particularly a great loss as prominent singer and blogger Jamyang Kyi’s blog had previously been hosted by Tibetabc but she seems to have stopped blogging altogether since the site was closed down.

Two recent examples of individuals using blogs and the internet for purposes of social justice have been Dolkar Tso and Shogdung. Dolkar Tso, the wife of environmentalist Karma Samdrup, was blogging almost daily in June and July 2010, documenting the events of her husband’s trial and expressing her personal feelings about the injustice of his sentencing to 15 years in prison. Amazingly, Dolkar Tso persistently kept blogging on Chinese blog-hosting site Sohu and, at the last count, is on her fifth blog as the others kept being shut down rapidly.

Tagyal, a writer and intellectual who used the pen name Shogdung meaning “Morning Conch”, openly spoke out in April 2010 following the devastating earthquake that hit Yushu. He, along with several other intellectuals, published an open letter on Tibetan language blog-hosting site http://www.sangdhor.com in which they expressed condolences and at the same time were critical of the Chinese government in their handling of the earthquake relief efforts. Following this open letter, Shogdung was arrested and is still facing trial. Following Shogdung’s arrest, the site Sangdhor was taken offline for several months and has only recently come back online.

The last two examples of Dolkar Tso and Shogdung illustrate the importance of Tibetan blogs as sources of information and as ways to highlight injustice but evidently this comes at a great price for the individuals involved. The virtual Sweet Tea House is ultimately as vulnerable as the Lhasa tea houses of the 1990s were and is likely to remain so as long as Tibetan blogs remain behind the Great Firewall.

______________________________

Dechen Pemba is a UK born Tibetan, based in London.  She is the editor of the website High Peaks Pure Earth, which provides insightful commentary on Tibet related news and issues and translations from writings in Tibetan and Chinese posted blogs.

TAKE ACTION: 4 Tibetans Shot Dead by Chinese Police over Mining Protest

On August 17th, Chinese police opened fire on a group of Tibetans protesting the expansion of a Chinese-owned gold mining operation in Palyul County, Kardze Prefecture in eastern Tibet (Ch: Baiyu County, Ganzi Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province). Voice of Tibet Radio (in Tibetan) and Radio Free Asia (in English) have reported that four Tibetans were shot dead and thirty more were injured in this violent attack on unarmed protesters.

The group had been picketing the county government office to stop the mine expansion, which is destroying farmland and harming the local environment. Chinese police reportedly used ‘incapacitating gas’ to try and disburse the Tibetans, but when the group resisted, police opened fire. Join people worldwide in condemning the killing of innocent Tibetans.

TAKE ACTION: Send a letter to the Party Secretary of Sichuan Province, Liu Qibao, and to the Kardze (Ch: Ganzi) Prefecture Government.
(We will also fax your letter to their offices.)

Tibetans detained near Shigatse for protesting gold mining operations (May 2010

The fatal shootings in Palyul County mark an escalation in the Chinese government’s response to the growing opposition by Tibetans towards Chinese and other foreign mining companies operating on their land. Please take action now to shine a global spotlight on the Chinese government’s actions. International pressure does make a difference and will help to protect Tibetans inside Tibet who continue to risk everything to stop China’s rampant environmental degradation and to preserve their beautiful and fragile homeland.

Please call the Chinese authorities to condemn the shootings and to call for the immediate release of those detained in Palyul County.

In Sichuan:
+86-28-84356776 – Foreign Affairs Department
+86-28-86747716 – Justice Department
+86-28-86604437 – General Government Office
(Please note: China is 12 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time.)

In Your Country:
Call the Chinese consulate or Chinese embassy nearest you.

To join the campaign to Stop Mining Tibet, please visit: http://www.StopMiningTibet.org

Thank you for all that you do for Tibet,

Tendor, Kate, Stefanie, TenDolkar, Mary-Kate and all of us here at SFT HQ

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4 Tibetans Shot in Cold Blood, China’s Global Image Sullied

As the Chinese government prepares for a massive media effort to boost its global image with celebrity ads this October, it have shown its true face in how they deal with Tibetans who speak out. Just last week, Chinese police in Palyul County, Kardze Prefecture, in eastern Tibet (Ch: Baiyu County, Ganzi Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province) opened fire on a group of Tibetans protesting the expansion of a Chinese-owned gold mining operation. It is now being reported that four Tibetans were shot dead and thirty more were injured in this violent attack on unarmed protesters.

China’s State Council has said the media effort will promote an image of prosperity, democracy, openness, peace and harmony.”

Clearly despite its claims to “openness, democracy, and peace and harmony,” the Chinese government is a human rights failure. Television ads featuring on Chinese celebrities Yao Ming, Yang Liwei, and Jackie Chan will not change the harsh reality of China’s brutal occupation of Tibet or fool the international community. Take Action: condemn the attack and call for those responsible to be brought to justice.

"Where will the next Drugchu be?"

 By Woeser

High Peaks Pure Earth has translated a blogpost by Woeser that was originally written for Radio Free Asia on August 10, 2010 in Beijing and posted on her blog on August 14, 2010. 

The article was written by Woeser just two days after devastating mudslides hit the area in Amdo known as Drugchu in Tibetan and Zhouqu in Chinese. At the time, Woeser was also monitoring Twitter reactions to the mudslides, a round-up and summary of which can be found on Global Voices.


Whilst international media has been calling the area by its Chinese name Zhouqu, Zhouqu is in fact the Chinese rendering of the Tibetan 'brug chu (འབུག་ཆུ་ Drugchu) meaning "Dragon River".    





On August 8, just before dawn, the most agonising landslides swept across Drugchu. Drugchu is situated in the Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Gansu province and, in the past, used to be an area inhabited purely by Tibetans. Today, only about a quarter of its entire population is Tibetan and it will become more and more Han Chinese: Nevertheless, as a student from Drugchu wrote in an essay: “Drugchu’s Tibetans are distributed mainly over the upper reaches of the Drugkar (Ch: Bailong) and Gongba (a tributary to Drugkar) rivers … apart from two villages on the east mountain, which are purely Han Chinese and a few places, which are inhabited by Han and Tibetans equally, most villages are occupied by Tibetans … over two thirds of the county’s area is in fact inhabited by Tibetans.”

Locally, information is being spread that the landslides were not only a result of heavy rainstorms but also of the destruction of the ecosystem by human beings. Thanks to the internet, much information regarding this can be obtained. There is no need to “jump over the Great Firewall”, all data, reports and surveys provided by the authorities deliver sufficient proof. The Drugchu County’s annals testify that this place “has always been renowned for its green hills and clear waters with the surging Bailong River elegantly crossing the entire county, graceful like a khata, lined with immense forests and crossing over deep valleys.” However, this picturesque scenery has been destroyed over the past 50 years. In 2005, official media reported that from August 1952, when the Drugchu Forest Management Bureau was founded, until 1990, the entire county’s forests were reduced by 100,000 cubic metres per year. Plants were also severely damaged and the harm caused to the ecosystem went beyond any limits.

In fact, similar situations are very common everywhere on the vast Tibetan land. For example, the rich natural resources of Kandze (Ch: Ganzi) County forest,  declared the number one out of all forests in the whole of China, and which, apart from some areas that were used by locals or for temple buildings, has always been self-sustaining and untouched. After 1950, large-scale tree-felling activities started, some organised, and some at random; it ended up in indiscriminate and excessive deforestation to the extent that, as it was the case in the Drango (Ch: Luhuo) County, forests were completely exhausted with only bald hillsides left and the county’s Forest Management Bureau had to be disbanded. The consequences of this excessive felling of trees could be felt in the late 1990s when a massive flood occurred in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River. This made the Chinese government pass a series of policies according to the maxim: “Better late than never”.

However, in recent years, under the "Great Western Development Programme” and in line with the call for “great economic development”, governments in all regions have continued to plunder natural resources; they say that it is in order to stimulate the GDP, but in actual fact this just serves as a cover for the authorities’ corrupt and greedy behaviour. A county such as Drugchu, with just over only 130,000 inhabitants and a few more than 20 villages, has endured 47 hydropower development programmes since 2003 and is home to 15 hydropower stations with another 14 currently being installed; it is hard to imagine at what range this many hydropower stations will be erected in the turbulent waves of the river. Furthermore, a fellow netizen, who has actually been to Drugchu, highlighted the damage caused by mining activities in the area and said that due to many years of gold mining, the hillsides are deforested leaving only grey and black soil, the rivers and creeks are full of gold mining equipment and in the river runs grey and black mud.

However, according to the Chinese authorities, the landslides were a natural disaster; this is the same reason that is always given in situations of disaster, man-made calamities are never admitted or recognised. Yet, there are a few experts who concluded that the severe landslides were in fact caused by excessive deforestation as well as by the building of large-scale irrigation works, increasing the likelihood of severe ecological disasters. Also, shortcomings in the urban planning of the county capital contributed to the disaster. Yin Yueping, a famous specialist for the prevention of ecological disasters, already said, in light of the heavy land- and mudslides that occurred in Dartsedo (Ch: Kangding) two years ago, that “when I went to the Kandze County, I asked the local county head why he would install that many hydropower stations as they would bring about many problems, including the continuous landslides in the county capital. He answered that by erecting this many hydroelectric stations, his yearly tax revenues amounted to 400 million...” The geologist, Yang Liankang bluntly says, “China’s need for hydropower has not yet exceeded the need for human life.”

I have never actually been to Drugchu myself but I have seen surrounding areas similar in terms of geography and climate and also, I have lived in the Kham area for many years, so this naturally makes me think that this time this engulfing landslide rushing down like a giant dragon hit Drugchu but where will it be next? An article found through Twitter made me really feel uncomfortable: “During the decades before the 1980s, almost the entire indigenous forests of the Muli area were destroyed; in the following years, gold diggers wreaked havoc like rats; now in the current century, it is the installation of hydropower stations. The formerly quiet, graceful and peaceful Shambhala has turned into a noisy, vulgar and savage place. The disaster in Drugchu is the overture for Muli.” The names of many familiar Tibetan places are one by one passing in front of my eyes; I cannot help but shudder all over.

Beijing, August 10, 2010


Online Profile of Tibetan Businessman Dorje Tashi, Sentenced to Life Imprisonment

High Peaks Pure Earth has been following the case of high-profile Tibetan businessman Dorje Tashi. According to international media reports, Dorje Tashi was sentenced to life imprisonment on June 26, 2010, after a three-day trial by the Lhasa Municipality Intermediate People's Court.


Despite Dorje Tashi's arrest having taken place sometime after the protests in Lhasa in March 2008, this has been the first information about his case to have reached the media. High Peaks Pure Earth has obtained these photos of Dorje Tashi that were taken in Beijing in 2005:

Dorje Tashi in Beijing, 2005 Photo credit High Peaks Pure Earth

Dorje Tashi in Beijing, 2005 Photo credit High Peaks Pure Earth

An indication of Dorje Tashi's high-profile status is his inclusion in the "People" section of the most popular Tibetan website TibetCul, in the category listing prominent contemporary Tibetans in Tibet. He is listed under the sub-category titled "Business Elite" and shares a place in the sub-category alongside ten other Tibetans in the business community, including Karma Samdrup, recently sentenced to 15 years in prison.

Below is a translation of the online profile that was posted on TibetCul on November 11, 2006.

TibetCul Profile of Dorje Tashi

Awarded the prestigious Tibet Autonomous Region Party Committee and regional government’s "Outstanding Private Business Award", Shigatse Prefecture’s "Poverty Alleviation Special Contribution Award", Gansu Provincial Committee and provincial government's "Contribution to the Public Economy Development of Gannan Award" for Gannan Prefecture, and appointed Honorary Chancellor of Jianhua Vocational High School in Nanchong City in Sichuan Province in June 2004. On May 25, 2005, he was given Shigatse Prefecture’s Communist Youth League Committee "Youth Civilization" Individual Achievement Award, awarded every 10 years. The Manasarovar Hotel was awarded the "Youth Civilization" Group Achievement Award, awarded every 10 years.

Dorje Tashi vowed to work for the community, to contribute to the economic development of Tibet and, through his tireless efforts, established the Tibet Manasarovar Group (in Chinese, the Tibet Shenhu Group). The company consists of Lhasa Manasarovar Asian Hotel (3 Star), Manasarovar Hotel (3 Star), a travel agency, Manasarovar Business Hotel (4 Star), Shigatse Oasis Real Estate Development Company and Manasarovar Real Estate Development Company. The unemployed status of more than 780 local unemployed people was resolved and they brought in profits of over 2.26 million Yuan a year; over 4.6 million Yuan was handed out in staff salaries, and training was given to a group of young Tibetans to become hotel managers. At the same time as developing business enterprises, Dorje Tashi was always concerned about people's suffering, and since its inception the company has made several tens of thousands in cash donations for poverty and disaster relief, and the staff have often visited the widowed and elderly or those living alone. He has been active in social welfare undertakings and from 2002 until the present, he has given a generous allowance to the children of poor workers in Lhasa Chengguan district's Tsomonling nursery school.

In 2004, the Shigatse Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference activity centre  for veteran cadres was not doing well, and after Dorje Tashi found out about this he gave them several tens of thousands to improve the conditions for their activities. In 2004, he made contributions of several tens of thousands during the Communist Youth League of Shigatse Prefectural Committee's "Three To The Rural Areas" campaign. On July 5, 2004, when he learned of the 7.6 earthquake in Drongba County, Shigatse Prefecture, he immediately appealed to the company's managers and employees for contributions. The company made contributions of several tens of thousands and his personal contributions were several tens of thousands, and the collection activities in Shigatse Prefecture had the vigourous support of the Prefectural Party Committee. When Manasarovar Hotel was being constructed in 2001, Shigatse Prefecture suffered from floods, and he immediately organised his construction workers to become flood disaster relief workers and join the front line. Money was scarce in these efforts and he donated generously tens of thousands. In 2002, following an appeal for donations by the municipal committee for poverty and disaster relief, his personal contributions amounted to several tens of thousands, Manasarovar Hotel made several tens of thousands in donations and gave in-kind donations of more than 240 items. In November 2003, following the municipal government's appeal for contributions to the rural poor, he gave several tens of thousands as a private donation, the highest for a Party member. Dorje Tashi's tireless love of learning combined with his intelligence created his forward-looking, visionary enterprises.

Massive Mudslide Claims Lives in Amdo Drugchu -Updated

During the early morning hours on Sunday August 8th, a massive mudslide struck Drugchu County in eastern Tibet (Ch: Zhuoqu County, Gannan Tibetan Autonomous prefecture, Gansu province).

Media reports from Friday August 13th, put the death toll of Sunday’s tragic landslide at 1100 with at least 600 people still missing.

Heavy rain last week reportedly caused a temporary dam on the Drugchu river (Ch: Bailong river) to burst creating a 2-mile long lake that overflowed sending waves of water, mud, and rocks onto  the town adding to this natural and man-made disaster. The scope of the devastation in Drugchu County can be seen in a video by the BBC here and photos here.

Woeser, the Tibetan writer and blogger based in Beijing has been monitoring tweets from the region which are available in English language here. @melissakchan corespondent for Aljazeera is currently in Drugchu tweeting updates.

Drugchu County is located just 30 miles from Labrang Monastery, a site of intense protest during the 2008 Tibetan uprising.

All of us at SFT send our heartfelt condolences to families who have lost loved ones in Drugchu.

ART OF RESISTANCE: The Tibet Movement Post-2008, August 28th in Toronto!

Students for a Free Tibet Canada is excited to invite you to a special event: ART OF RESISTANCE: The Tibet Movement Post-2008 on Saturday, August 28th in Toronto!

Please join all of us at SFT Canada for a unique opportunity to hear from two prominent leaders in the Tibet movement today – SFT International’s Executive Director, Tenzin Dorjee (Tendor) and the Tibet Action Institute’s Director, Lhadon Tethong (SFT’s former Executive Director) – about the current state of the Tibetan freedom struggle and where it is heading.

The evening will also include live entertainment by Tibetan artists, delicious Tibetan food and drinks, and dancing!

DATE: Saturday, August 28th, 2010

LOCATION: Lithuanian Hall, 1573 Bloor Street West, Toronto, ON

PROGRAM:
4:00pm – 6:00pm (Doors open at 3:30pm): Talk by Lhadon and Tendor (FREE)
7:00pm – 2am (Doors open at 6pm): Political theatre performance, live concert, dinner, dancing and more! (TICKETED)

*Advance tickets are $20 and $25 at the door.
*Please note, advance tickets can be purchased for the discount rate of 5 tickets for the price of 4.

Get your tickets now!

Tickets

1 ticket $20.00 2 tickets $40.00 3 tickets $60.00 4 tickets $80.00 5 tickets $80.00 6 tickets $100.00

Tickets can also be purchased at the following locations in Toronto:

- Tibet Kitchen
- Om Restaurant
- Tibet Emporium
- Himalayan Cafe
- Le Tibet
- Tsampa Cafe
- Shangrila Restaurant

All funds raised will go directly to helping SFT Canada’s work for Tibet!

"If Tibetans Took To The Streets For The Tibetan Language" 
By Woeser

High Peaks Pure Earth has translated a blogpost by Woeser that was originally written for Radio Free Asia on July 28, 2010 in Beijing and posted on her blog on August 5, 2010. The blogpost is a commentary on the recent mass protests in the Chinese province of Guangdong against proposals for the main provincial TV Channel to broadcast primarily in Mandarin and not in Cantonese. The decline of the Tibetan language has long been a much discussed issue in the Tibetan blogosphere and regular readers will remember previous posts on this issue as well as the video posted on High Peaks Pure Earth titled "Let's All Speak in Pure Tibetan". Woeser reflects on the language policies of the Chinese government, implications of the protests for Tibetans and highlights the marginalisation of ethnic minority languages in China. Woeser also references Tashi Tsering, a prominent figure of modern Tibetan history. For those interested in finding out more about his life, here is a link to his autobiography on Amazon: The Struggle for Modern Tibet: The Autobiography of Tashi Tsering We “ethnic minorities” took notice of thousands of Cantonese people recently taking to the streets fighting for their language, a spectacle that ended peacefully. Uyghurs have posted numerous articles about this on the internet; the blogs on TibetCul were also full of articles titled “Maybe the Spanish language issue has inspired the Chinese”, thought-provokingly stating: when the past Spanish dictator, Francisco Franco, banned Catalonian people from using their own language, he created a scar that would not easily heal. At this year’s football World Cup, we were able to see Catalonian flags in the stadiums thereby carrying the language dispute going on inside Spain to the outside world. This should be taken as a warning for the Chinese to avoid creating splittism by subjugating and suppressing local dialects; instead they should take this advice and “think about making Cantonese, Minan, Hakka, Tibetan and Uyghur dialects official Chinese languages, thus strengthening different people’s sense of belonging to China.” (more...)

New footage of Runggye Adak’s Protest Released

On August 1, 2007, Runggye Adak, a nomad from Lithang, Kham in eastern Tibet was arrested for publicly calling for the return of the Dalai Lama and freedom for Tibet. This new footage, although only a short clip of Adak’s brave protest, comes two years after his arrest. Please take action on his behalf by signing a petition to Party Secretary Sichuan Province, Liu Qibao.