Tibetan Monks Sealed in Sichuan Monastery Request Permission to Pray for Chinese Quake Victims

Currently based out of Dharamsala, India, friend-of-SFT and Producer of Pacifica/KPFK’s The Tibet Connection radio show Rebecca Novick posted an amazing story to The Huffington Post. Relatively inexperienced at this blogging thing, I hope I’m not breaking any rules by simply re-posting it in full here:

Tibetan Monks Sealed in Sichuan Monastery Request Permission to Pray for Chinese Quake Victims

Tsering, a monk living in exile in Dharamsala, India, received a static-filled call from Tibet at 10:30 at night on May 15th. On the other end was a monk from Kirti Monastery in Sichuan, the province where China’s devastating earthquake took tens of thousands of lives.

The monk told Tsering that the monastic community of Kirti had requested that the Chinese authorities to allow them to perform prayers for the Chinese people who had suffered in the disaster.

Since March 6th, Kirti monastery has been surrounded by large numbers of Chinese security forces. The local Tibetan community has not been allowed access after large public demonstrations — in which thousands of the monks participated — resulting in mass arrests. For a few days, Kirti became a temporary morgue for fifteen Tibetans who eye witnesses claim were shot and killed by Chinese police while protesting non-violently. Scores of other protesters were reported to have been killed in the ensuing crackdown.

Two weeks later, after photographs of those killed in the protests were leaked to the outside world, the People’s Armed Police and Public Security Bureau officials stormed the monastery and searched the rooms. During the raid, they defaced pictures of the Dalai Lama — an unimaginable offense to Tibetan monks. (Photo courtesy of the Tibetan Centre for Human Rights & Democracy.)

It was in this atmosphere that the monks of Kirti made their quiet request to do prayers for the Chinese quake victims. Since March, the monks of Kirti have not been allowed to conduct their usual Buddhist rituals, but on May 15th, they received special permission to make an exception. The monks began the day with a prayer offering ceremony and collected cash donations from among their members. They also wrote letters of condolences to the bereaved families.

The monks of Kirti monastery, located in Ngapa county in Amdo, also conveyed the following message to the Chinese people:

As monks of a Buddhist Monastery, we unwaveringly follow the nonviolent path shown by Buddha and His Holiness the Dalai Lama. We practice the Buddhist teachings of loving compassion to all sentient beings. We are all one human family. Therefore the monks of Kirti monastery offer their prayers to the Chinese victims of this disaster.

We want our Chinese brothers and sisters to know that we Tibetans are not against them as the Government has tried to claim through the state run television after the March 14 unrest in Lhasa. This has been creating a rift and hostility between Tibetans and Chinese. The monks from Kirti monastery confidently represent the Tibetans by clarifying that the Tibetans are against the unjust policies of the People’s Republic of China and not against the Chinese people themselves.

We wish to express to the Chinese people that we have never harbored any anger towards them. Our only wish is to find a solution to the Tibet issue. Tibetans and Chinese have a deep history of cultural relationships, and it’s a fact that Tibetans and Chinese have to live side by side. Therefore, we urge the Chinese people to join us to try to find a solution that will allow us to remain friends rather than enemies.

That solution may presently seem out of reach, but its sentiments like these that could bring it closer.

Burmese monks support Tibet

This just in:

The ‘International Burmese Monks Association’ called on the Chinese authorities yesterday to stop using violence against Tibetan monks and people who are staging protests in Tibet. [...]

The statement of Burmese monks said they are concerned about the security of their fellow Tibetan monks, their freedom of expression and freedom of religion in Tibet.

The Thai based Burmese monks association Vice-Chairman Ashin Pyinyar Tharmi said, “The persecution unleashed by the Chinese authorities insults Buddhism. We demand that the Chinese government stop it. They beat up Tibetan abbots and monks, and imprisoned them. We cannot accept these things for any reason. [...]“.

Ashin Pyinyar Tharami said that raiding and sealing monasteries by the Chinese authorities in Tibet are identical to the activities by the Burmese junta in Burma.

This reminds us of an article by a Tibetan writer, “A Lesson From Our Burmese Brothers and Sisters,” which came out during the pro-democracy demonstrations in Burma last September.  It predicted many of the parallels we are seeing right now between the Tibetan and Burmese demonstrations.

The Burmese and Tibetan peoples are both suffering under brutal, repressive regimes; in both cases, the road of oppression leads directly to the Zhongnanhai leadership compound in Beijing.

(Protests in Burma, top, and Tibet, bottom)

From SFGate “Message in the Ice”

Ethnic Tibetans write a Tibetan prayer for good fortune on the surface of a frozen river in Yushu, China. A human rights group accused China of actively trying to undermine the Tibetan language in an effort to assimilate the region’s unique culture.

Original post here

This is What Resistance Can Look Like

The International Campaign for Tibet has posted new photos from Lhasa and Labrang, showing Tibetans thronging to offer incense and light fireworks to celebrate the Dalai Lama’s Congressional Gold Medal.

This despite intense warnings and intimidation from Chinese authorities, who are revealing themselves to be increasingly powerless to stop concerted actions by the Tibetan people.

The Tibetan people see that the Chinese emperor has no clothes. China’s apparatus of terror and control in Tibet relies on people being intimidated and afraid. When enough people refuse to be intimidated and afraid, the whole system of control can unravel.

More photos can be seen here.

Update on Lhasa Crackdown

Information on the crackdown in Lhasa continues to trickle out. After clashes following Tibetans’ celebration of the Congressional Gold Medal being awarded to the Dalai Lama, Chinese security forces are “mopping up.”

Radio Free Asia reports:

Chinese authorities in Tibet have detained three monks and are questioning more than a dozen others after the monks tried to put up prayer flags celebrating the award of a U.S. congressional gold medal to the Dalai Lama, local sources say.

Chinese officials are also threatening those Tibetans with government jobs or pensions, which in Lhasa is the majority of middle-class professionals:

officials also warned current and retired Tibetan staff against any religious activities until Oct. 30, the sources said, including burning incense or putting up prayer flags.

“If they do, current employees would face disciplinary actions including termination of their services. If any retired Tibetan staff engage in these activities, their retirement benefits will be forfeited,” one source said.

In a sign of how afraid Chinese officials are, they also temporarily closed Pangsa Monastery in Lhasa. This was after thousands of Tibetans started flocking there as a result of a comment by the Dalai Lama on the sacred nature of the monastery’s main reliquary statue. Chinese officials are clearly worried about large gatherings of Tibetans, and are also desperate to fight the Dalai Lama’s influence in Tibet (clearly a losing battle, sorry China).

All these developments amount to a strong statement of Tibetans’ loyalty to the Dalai Lama, and a reminder that the Chinese government may have the guns, but it does not have Tibetans’ hearts.

Kids + Graffiti = Arrest, Beatings

In a normal country, kids who do graffiti get in minor trouble. In Chinese-occupied Tibet, it can mean incommunicado detention and being beaten bloody.

According to a new report by Human Rights Watch, seven Tibetan high school students are being “detained on suspicion of writing pro-Tibetan independence slogans on buildings… One of the detainees, aged 14, is reported to have been badly beaten during or after the arrest and was bleeding profusely when last seen by relatives.”

HRW continues:

police detained some 40 students on or around September 7. The students were alleged to have written slogans calling for the return of the Dalai Lama and a free Tibet the previous day on the walls of the village police station and on other walls in the village…

[...] The students’ arrests are the latest example of an increasingly harsh response from Chinese authorities to the slightest hints of dissent over issues as diverse as cultural and religious policies, forced resettlement of Tibetan herders, environmental degradation, replacement of Tibetan cadres with ethnic Chinese ones, and increased migration of ethnic Chinese settlers to traditionally Tibetan regions. Several incidents in recent months have involved clashes between Tibetan residents and police forces.

Is China so insecure in its rule over Tibet that it feels threatened by children’s graffiti? Apparently so.

And for good reason. Even Tibetan children who have never seen the Dalai Lama, and who only know life under Chinese rule, are speaking out for Tibet’s independence and the Dalai Lama’s return. These sentiments are so widespread, including in the younger generations, that China has no hope of stamping them out. Unfortunately, these children have to suffer while China continues to fight a hopeless battle.

Turning Point for Tibet?

This is an exciting time for Tibet. As the Beijing Olympics approach, it’s good to assess now and then where the Tibet movement is. More and more, the Tibet movement has been winning important victories — even as repression worsens inside Tibet.

Internationally, HH the Dalai Lama is receiving more honors than at any time since he received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989. This includes the US Congressional Gold Medal (America’s highest civilian award), honorary Canadian citizenship (an honor only shared with Nelson Mandela and Raoul Wallenberg), and unprecedented official meetings with the German chancellor and Canadian prime minister.

As Canada’s Globe and Mail says,

The Dalai Lama and supporters of a free Tibet have been winning a number of battles on the international stage in recent years, hoping to force the Chinese government to loosen its grip on the region ahead of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

In similar news, over two-thirds of Canadians, according to a recent poll, now believe their government should raise the issue of Tibetan human rights and freedoms with the Chinese government, regardless of its potential impact on trade with China.

In the global media, Tibet is being discussed more and more often. The issue is frequently linked with the Beijing Olympics, and also in the context of the Chinese government’s religious repression and economic colonization there. It seems that the Chinese government’s plan to use the media around the Olympics to spotlight its claim to Tibet has backfired. After China’s entire Olympic party was spoiled by a few Tibet activists with a banner, video cameras and laptop computers, you can bet that the Chinese government is worried about what it’s brought upon itself.

Even Taiwanese president Chen Shui-bian recently declared that Taiwan will support “the Tibetan people in safeguarding their fundamental human rights and fighting for their right to self-determination.”

Inside Tibet, of course, religious and political repression is getting worse (although it is sometimes hard to believe that is even possible). But brave Tibetans like Runggye Adak, and the hundreds who called for his release, continue to surprise the Chinese government by showing that Tibetans’ resistance lives on.

Tibetans should also be inspired by the dramatic protests against the military government in Burma, being led by Buddhist monks. In Tibet too, monks have been at the forefront of the freedom struggle, which is why the Chinese government has struggled so hard to control Tibetan Buddhism. But try as it might, China has failed. The Burmese protests are a reminder that repression only temporarily constrains a people’s dissatisfaction — it can never erase it. This is equally true in Tibet.

So those of us on the outside should take heart from a confluence of factors. Outside Tibet, the Tibet movement has recently been piling on victories against the Chinese government, which must be feeling its grip over Tibet is more and more assailed. Inside Tibet, the Tibetan people have shown remarkable bravery in the face of an upsurge in repression. And the inspiring example of the Burmese monks show us that even when it appears that a dictatorship has completely won, a people can shake the government to its very core. When all these factors come together, we can see real change.

Tibetan Government-in-exile Repudiates China’s Reincarnation Rules

The democratically-elected Tibetan government-in-exile (TGIE) has strongly rebuked the Chinese Communist Party’s attempt to seize control of Tibetan Buddhist reincarnations.

In a press statement issued jointly with the heads of all the schools of Tibetan Buddhism, the TGIE calls the Chinese government’s new regulations, which went into effect September 1, ”ludicrous and unwarranted.”

These regulations, the TGIE and religious heads write, are absurd from the perspective of religious freedom, the tenets of Tibetan Buddhism, the history of the institution of reincarnation, and the wishes of the Tibetan Buddhist community.

They also call on Tibetans in Tibet, including government cadres, to use the autonomy rights that Chinese law claims (at least on paper) to give to Tibet to oppose the implementation of these terrible regulations.

Here is the press statement:

Joint Statement to Repudiate the so-called Order no. 5 of China’s State Administration of Religious Affairs on Management Measures for the Reincarnation of ‘Living Buddhas’ in Tibetan Buddhism

Ludicrous and unwarranted as it is, China’s State Administration of Religious Affairs has come out with a document called the order no. 5, containing 14 articles on Management Measures for the Reincarnation of ‘Living Buddhas’ in Tibetan Buddhism which, it said, will take effect on 1 September. Replete with contradictory statements and wild claims, the document reflects the ulterior or true motives of the Chinese leadership. Since it will serve as a big tool for the Chinese government to brutally repress the innocent Tibetans under their tyrannical rule - and will also be recorded as a gross historical misrepresentation - we feel it is necessary to issue a statement, repudiating this document through a brief analysis of its contents.

(more…)

Sept. 1, 2007 — Anguish for Tibet, Shame for China

Today, September 1, 2007, is truly a black day. Today, China’s ridiculous new regulations come into effect, claiming for the Chinese Communist Party the right to approve Tibetan Buddhist reincarnations.

It is impossible to overstate the anguish these regulations are causing in Tibetans’ hearts.

One Tibetan we spoke with described it this way: an overwhelming and dizzying sense of despair, as if someone were ripping their heart out and leaving only a hollow, aching cavity… They said China does anything it wants to Tibetans, trampling them with no hesitation… And just when they thought there is nothing more China can do — after occupying their country, ravaging their civilization, and doing what it pleases on their land — then it attacks what is most precious to their faith and identity… Thy said the whole world is watching and tut tutting at how absurd this is, but no one is doing anything… And Tibetans are left to suffer whatever fate their overlords in Beijing decide.

To say the Chinese government is bringing shame on itself is an understatement. It is showing how vile, ridiculous, and simply wrong its control over Tibet is. How can a government capable of this depravity have any honor at all? And this is the government that will be hosting the world at the Olympic Games in 11 months?

The Chinese government should be careful — the more it pushes Tibetans, the more they will resist. The more it oppresses Tibetans, the more they will realize that independence is the only way they can reclaim their rights.

We at SFT share a sense of anguish today, and a renewed determination to work tirelessly for the independence of Tibet. To the Chinese government, we say: we have confronted you in your embassies, in Tibet, and in your capital. The Beijing Olympics are coming in 11 months… and so are we.

Tibet will be free. Bod rangzen topgyi re.

From Burma to Tibet?

Tibet and Burma are linked in many ways: their peoples and languages are related, and they share a deep faith in Buddhism and the misfortune of being under brutal regimes. Tibet and Burma also both saw widespread protests for freedom in the late 1980s, which their respective regimes crushed violently.

Could a new wave of technology-enabled protests in Burma right now presage a fresh era of resistance in Tibet as well?

As the New York Times reports, small but persistent protests have erupted across Burma for the past two weeks, in one of the biggest challenges to the dictatorship since the 1988 demonstrations were brutally crushed.

The protests … do not appear to be centrally organized and have continued despite the arrests of a number of activist leaders.

[...] “A week and a half ago people were saying the protests didn’t have that much future,” said Dave Mathieson, an expert on [Burma]… “But they are starting to spread, and they are continuing in Rangoon.”

What has changed to give the protests added power against the ruthlessness of the military government? Technology in the hands of individual citizens.

The protests may also be spreading because of transmissions through the Internet of photographs and video that have slipped past government controls.

[...] The readily accessible visual images have given the small demonstrations a disproportionate impact both abroad and at home.

“That’s the big difference from 1988,” said Mr. Mathieson. “The technology is completely different. Even though the military’s power may be the same, the ability of the protesters to get their message around the country has grown.”

It’s far too early to know how much impact the Burmese demonstrations will ultimately have. Their biggest “success” so far is simply happening, given the authoritarian environment.  The junta is not afraid to use coercion, and is relatively impervious to outside pressure thanks to China’s protection. But despite these challenges, these tech-enabled protests give hope to people who support Burmese democracy.

Is something similar happening in Tibet?

SFT effectively used new communication technology to spread around the world dramatic photos and video from our protests on Mount Everest and the Great Wall. Our messages and images were picked up by global media, and we also know they made their way into Tibet and China (Tibetans inside Tibet have communicated to us how inspired they were).

What about actions that originate in Tibet, where the stakes are even higher?

We’re already seeing how mobile phones and digital cameras have allowed word to spread about the crisis in Lithang (where Runggye Adak’s inspiring act of free speech led to his arrest, demonstrations by hundreds of Tibetans, a violent crackdown by Chinese security forces, and an ongoing tense standoff).

Tibetans in other parts of Tibet know about, and are being inspired by, this bravery — despite China’s best efforts at censoring the internet and jamming radio. It’s also possible that the Chinese government feels constrained knowing that almost instantaneous information about its actions will get out. Did the People’s Armed Police use tear gas and shock grenades instead of live ammunition, as they did in Tibet in the late 1980s, because the world is watching?

What would have happened if the internet, mobile phones, and YouTube existed during the massive pro-independence demonstrations in Lhasa from 1987 to 1989? Would they have spread even more? How would things have changed if the world saw shocking, immediate images of the brutality of China’s initial occupation of Tibet in the 1950s? Would more have been done?

Technology wouldn’t have changed everything, but it would have changed some things — and some things could have made a big difference.

The brave Burmese protesters are showing that when a group of people stand up to the most brutal regimes, technology can give them more impact than ever before. Maybe protests in Rangoon or Lithang won’t bring down the respective regimes (this time), but they will shake the leadership in ways that wouldn’t have happened before. Now, citizens have a new power to document and spread what is happening, tipping the balance in the battle over information. The rise of tech-empowered protesters means that for repressive regimes, things will never be the same again.