This is what democracy looks like

Members of Students for a Free Tibet meet with the top staffer for Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, who recently replaced Hillary Clinton in the U.S. Senate, to ask for her support on a number of congressional bills, resolutions and efforts in support of Tibet.

Senator Gillibrand was on the floor of the Senate that day speaking so she could not meet with them directly, but she is a strong supporter of the Tibetan people:

At Dartmouth, she learned to speak and write Chinese before spending a semester in China, and wrote a senior project titled “The History of Tibetan Resistance to the Chinese Occupation of Tibet 1950-1988.” As part of her studies, she and her mother visited the Dalai Lama’s house while traveling in India.

more on Senator Gillibrand from the NY Times

Truly a Tibet-Wide Uprising

Pro-independence demonstrations continue to spread across the whole of Tibet, not just in Lhasa or what the Chinese government calls the “Tibetan Autonomous Region.”  Chinese authorities must be freaking out that the whole of Tibet is ablaze with resistance.  This is an irrefutable sign of how widespread is the Tibetan desire for freedom and independence.

According to the Washington Post:

Violence in Tibet spilled over into neighboring provinces Sunday where Tibetan protesters defied a Chinese government crackdown… Protests against Chinese rule of Tibet were reported in neighboring Sichuan and Qinghai provinces and also in western Gansu province…

In Sichuan province, Tibetan monks and police clashed Sunday in Aba county after the monks staged a protest…  [O]ne policeman had been killed and three or four police vans had been set on fire…  [A]t least seven people have been shot dead in the county…

In Qinghai province, 100 monks defied a directive confining them to Rongwo Monastery in Tongren city by climbing a hill behind the monastery, where they set off fireworks and burned incense to protest the crackdown in Tibet. …

In western Gansu province, more than 100 students protested at a university in Lanzhou ….

A curfew was imposed in Xiahe city in Gansu province on Sunday, a day after police fired tear gas on a 1,000 protesters, including Buddhist monks and ordinary citizens, who had marched from the historic Labrang monastery.

Large communities of ethnic Tibetans live far outside modern Tibet in areas that were the Himalayan region’s eastern and northeastern provinces of Amdo and Kham until the communist takeover in 1951. Those areas were later split off by Beijing to become the Chinese province of Qinghai and part of Sichuan province

Eyewitness Reports from RFA

Radio Free Asia just posted these eyewitness reports from across Tibet:

Tibetans Report More Deaths, Spreading Protests As China Clamps Down

2008.03.15

Numerous sources interviewed by RFA’s Tibetan service have reported that anti-Chinese protests have spread further from the Tibetan capital, Lhasa, into the Amdo and Kham regions in Qinghai and Sichuan provinces, respectively. Witnesses notably reported a crowd of thousands at the Labrang monastery in Amdo. In Xiahe, where Labrang is located, protesters were said to have smashed doors and windows at the county government offices and police station until they were dispersed by tear-gas. Following are excerpted interviews from Tibetan sources who spoke with RFA on Saturday, March 15, 2008:

“I am in the Lhasa area. There was shooting today. Many Tibetans who were dead and barely alive were collected at the TAR [Tibet Autonomous Region] Security Office area, and I heard from a reliable source that there were 67 bodies. Some were alive and most were dead when they were brought in… This included male and female, and I don’t have the details… But it’s confirmed that there were in total about 67 bodies collected at this place. I cannot tell you the source of my information, but 67 bodies were seen by my source. It was officially announced by TAR officials that martial law was imposed. Right now I can hear shootings. We saw many tanks. Sometimes they fire in the air to threaten the Tibetans. At some places, like the Karma Kunsel area [near Lhasa], they are firing right now. Every Tibetan is stopped and their IDs are checked. Even Tibetan government workers are checked, but the Chinese are free to move around. Many Tibetans who were arrested were taken toward the Toelung area and several other jails in different parts of Lhasa. Even in Penpo, six monks were arrested last night and today there were demonstrations and Chinese shops were burnt. I think they might impose these restrictions for at least another seven to eight days. If they are not allowed to move around, the Tibetans won’t get food supplies, and the Tibetans are already suffering shortages of food. Right now the Chinese authorities are cracking down, but there are indications that this could spread further in rural areas. …There is no indication of any organization planning these demonstrations. It was a spontaneous response of Tibetans, and they jumped into the rally. They were shouting ‘Long live the Dalai Lama’ and ‘Independence for Tibet,’ and burning Chinese flags. Right now I was told that Tibetan monks in Samye monastery in Lokha are protesting too.”—Source in Lhasa

Online Touch-Up Kit
Vicodin Withdrawal
Premature Ejaculation Cure
Phentermine Diet Pills
Cheap Tenormin
Cheap Oxytrol
Cheap Zimulti
Online Chloromint
Buy Abana
Orgasm Enhancer
Cheap Clomid
Cheap Male Enhancement Oil
Cheap Head Strong
Buy CLA
Lipitor And Grapefruit
Cheap Acomplia
Noroxin
Green tea
Atacand
Stop Smoking Patch
Buy Penis Extender Deluxe Gold
Maxalt
Tribulus
Cheap Lukol
Epivir-HBV
Danazol
QuickBust
Buy Desyrel
Leukeran
Cingular Ringtones
Serevent
Tramadol 50 Mg
Propecia
Geodon
Buy Cialis Jelly
Cheap Propecia
Buy Urispas
Herbal Phentermine
Cheap Flagyl ER
Female Viagra
Requip
Men Attracting Pheromones
Thyroid Booster
Cheap ZMA-Power
Propecia Uk
Lortab Online
Nexium
Online Nexium
Buy Mental Booster
Methox-400
(more…)

UN Fact-Finding Mission and Olympic Boycott

Imagine for a moment that the carnage and chaos we are seeing in Tibet occurred in another country.

Wouldn’t there be frantic calls for a UN fact finding mission, especially when the numbers and causes of deaths remain disputed? Even a regime as isolated and odious as Burma accepted a UN mission.

So it is completely right that there are calls for the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to send a UN fact finding mission to Tibet. If China really feels it has nothing to hide, it should prove it.

Now back to our hypothetical: imagine that the other country were being occupied by a third country, who happened to be hosting the Olympics in five months… Would there be an Olympic boycott?

Almost certainly! The Moscow Olympics were boycotted because the USSR invaded Afghanistan, so what about China’s brutal Tiananmen-style carnage in Tibet? That’s the logic of Richard Gere, and he has a point:

he said it was his personal opinion that it would be “unconscionable” to attend the Beijing Games if China failed to deal peacefully with unrest in the Himalayan region — protests that have turned to riots and already claimed several lives.

Informants, Threats and Ultimatums

Chinese authorities in Tibet have resorted to trying to use threats, issue ultimatums, and bribe informants to regain control.  This is a completely typical reaction: subterfuge, intimidation, and false promises of leniency to lure people to turn themselves in.

The Washington Post reports on the crackdown in the monasteries and nunneries:

Official statements suggested the government reaction in coming days would be tough, with Tibetan Buddhist monasteries — traditional focal point of opposition to Beijing’s rule — and nunneries being brought under tighter control.

The regional communist-controlled government said those who harbored protesters would be punished and it offered rewards and protection to informers.

UK’s The Telegraph similarly reports on China’s efforts to bribe informants and trick Tibetans with promises of leniency:

The Chinese authorities set a surrender deadline of Monday midnight for protestors to turn themselves in. Rewards and protection were being offered to potential informants.

Should we believe China’s promises of leniency?  Can pigs fly?  The following is a historical lesson from TCHRD:

The tactic is a clear ‘ploy’ by the Chinese authorities to trap the Tibetan demonstrators by inciting fear and intimidating the demonstrators to give in. The Chinese authorities will not live up to their promise of offering leniency to those who surrender, as it was the case in 1987- 1989 demonstrations in Lhasa.

Senator Obama “Condemns” China’s Use of Force in Tibet

Senator Barack Obama is the first U.S. presidential candidate to issue a statement on China’s crackdown in Tibet (issued March 14):

I am deeply disturbed by reports of a crackdown and arrests ordered by Chinese authorities in the wake of peaceful protests by Tibetan Buddhist monks. I condemn the use of violence to put down peaceful protests, and call on the Chinese government to respect the basic human rights of the people of Tibet, and to account for the whereabouts of detained Buddhist monks.

These events come on the 49th anniversary of the exile of the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists, the Dalai Lama. They demonstrate the continuing frustration of the Tibetan people at the way in which Beijing has ruled Tibet. [...]

Tibet should enjoy genuine and meaningful autonomy. [...] Now is the time to respect the human rights and religious freedom of the people of Tibet.

On the whole, this was a strong statement, definitely more powerful than the the tepid official U.S. reaction. Thank you, Senator Obama.

However, Senator Obama does miss something major. Tibetans aren’t just frustrated at “the way in which Beijing has ruled Tibet.” Tibetans are fundamentally opposed to Chinese rule in the first place. They are calling for independence, not “better” rule by Beijing.

Also, Senator Obama misses the significance of March 10, 1959; in addition to being when His Holiness the Dalai Lama fled into exile, it was when Tibetans across Tibet rose up against the Chinese occupation of their country. So while we appreciate Senator Obama’s support for Tibetan autonomy, we would be much happier if he recognized and supported what Tibetans are literally dying for in the streets: independence.

(As and when other presidential candidates make statements on Tibet, we will post them here.)

New York Times video on “worldwide Tibetan protests”

Jim Yardley of the New York Times narrates a short video about “worldwide Tibetan protests.” Click here to watch.

Speaker Pelosi: Chinese action in Tibet is “Disgraceful”

Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, issued this strong statement on March 12:

“The violent response by Chinese police forces to peaceful protesters in Tibet is disgraceful. It must be met with strong condemnation by the United States government and the international community. The Chinese government should immediately provide information on the welfare and whereabouts of the detained Buddhist monks and facilitate access by international human rights monitors and journalists to Tibetan areas. [...]

“It is long past time for Beijing to make progress on a solution that respects the human rights of every Tibetan. The plight of the people of Tibet is a challenge to the conscience of the world and the United States must be prepared to confront the Chinese government when they violate the human rights of their people.”

Thank you, Speaker Pelosi, for your consistent support for the people of Tibet.  May other leaders (ahem, looking at you, US, EU and UN) have the courage to follow your lead.

Taipei Times: “Beijing Olympics debacle has begun”

The Taipei Times looked at the unenviable options China now faces in Tibet: crack down and risk even more criticism 5 months before the Olympics, or risk Tibetans becoming even more emboldened in calling for independence.

The paper concludes that Beijing is likely to crack down but try to keep its violence out of the news, at least until after the Olympics. That is probably right:

[Beijing's] inclination is to use total force to extinguish Tibetan expressions of dissent, but to do so threatens to conflagrate an already delicate domestic mood.

The opposite strategy — a negotiated solution with Tibetan leaders in exile and religious figures in Tibet — remains out of the question: Such a concession would be revolutionary and precipitate changes in other parts of the country that would be seen as a threat to the Chinese Communist Party.

The likely approach will fall somewhere in between. A media blackout and selected arrests in monasteries and elsewhere — but also a concerted effort to minimize the use of violence in more conspicuous locations.

Whatever China does, though, it has already lost in Tibet. The carefully constructed lie it has spun is exposed for the world to see. Thousands of brave Tibetans risked their lives to insist on their right to freedom, and nothing China does can ever cover those indelible images up.

As the Taipei Times said, “the truth is out: The Beijing Olympics debacle has begun.”

The United Nations’ Tepid Response

Speaking of tepid responses, here is the disappointingly weak response from the United Nations:

In Geneva, the UN high commissioner for human rights, Louise Arbour issued a statement to express her concern about ‘the escalating tensions’ [in Tibet].

‘The high commissioner urges the government of China to allow the demonstrators to exercise their right to freedom of expression and assembly, to refrain from any excessive use of force while maintaining order, and to ensure those arrested are not ill-treated and are accorded due process in line with international standards,’ she said. [...]

A spokeswoman for UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon raised concerns over the development in Tibet, urging for measures to prevent violence following the clashes.

‘We are following the situation and we urge that care be taken by all concerned to avoid confrontation and violence,’ said spokeswoman Marie Okabe, when asked for the UN position on the situation.