BBC Photos on Tibet

Last week’s “Day in Pictures” series from the BBC ran some interesting photos related to Tibet, so here is the collection:

On July 27, the BBC carried this photo of His Holiness the Dalai Lama teaching in Germany:

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On July 23, the BBC carried this photo of Tibetan monks in India protesting in solidarity with the 14 Tibetans on hunger strike in New Delhi:

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And on July 25, the BBC carried this photo of “Chinese men and women, dressed in the typical costumes of the country’s ethnic minorities, listen to a pep talk ahead of the 2008 Olympics”:

The July 25 photo in particular begs for commentary: China will be using the Olympics as a propaganda tool to portray “minorities” as prosperous and happy. In upcoming Olympics-related events, look for more scenes with Chinese dressing in faux “minority” clothes, prancing around in exaggerated “ethnic” dances, oblivious to their neocolonial objectification of non-Chinese peoples. Certainly in the case of Tibet, this is a calculated move by the Chinese government to lay claim to Tibetan culture in an attempt to convince the world that Tibetans are Chinese.