We live in an increasingly uncertain world. In recent years we have faced conflicts, a pandemic, environmental disasters, economic challenges and a host of other social problems. We all have a personal responsibility to cultivate goodness and virtue in ourselves and in society.
My article is only a brief account of Tibet and Tibetans to give some essential information about the Tibetan cause. There are many people who are interested in the Tibetan cause but do not know the real issues. We must also recognise that the problem of Tibet is one of the many problems we are facing on our planet today.
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64th. Anniversary of March 10, 1959-2023
We are approaching March 10, the anniversary of the Tibetan uprising in Lhasa in 1959 against the Chinese invasion, and the Tibetans in exile commemorate this event every year so that no one may forget the tragedy of Chinese domination in their land.
To describe some facts about Tibet and what Tibetans have to endure the following article was published in 2008, but since then the Tibetan issue continues to remain unchanged and unfortunately very often the Tibetan cause has been exploited producing more harm than good!
Just to mention a few examples, it is important to think about on the condition of Tibetans by dividing two different aspects:
1) The welfare of Tibetans within Tibet must be dealt with and understood as an integrated part of the evolution that they are facing
by themselves with their potentialities and capacities and I have strong confidence in their courage, determination and intelligence, in fact they have already made great progress in all aspects in these very difficult 64 years.
by themselves with their potentialities and capacities and I have strong confidence in their courage, determination and intelligence, in fact they have already made great progress in all aspects in these very difficult 64 years.
2) A second aspect that is serious and worrisome is concerning the welfare of about one hundred thousand stateless Tibetans who live in the precarious condition of political refugees in India and Nepal. Despite the fact that 64 years have passed and nothing has changed and three or four generations of families continue to live without any real civil rights in this stateless condition in their host countries. A very long wait for an answer to these unresolved issues creates further tensions in Tibetan society.
Those who have the power to make decisions on these matters have a great responsibility to find a clear and speedy solution for these Tibetans without a homeland, without a national identity, stateless people destined to wander in limbo and always dependent on the will of others that may be benevolent today, but tomorrow could also turn into hostility.
Will the stateless Tibetans in India and Nepal be destined to live in this not very human condition forever?
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VOCI DI PACE/VOICES OF PEACE1st June 2008
The Fifty Years of Tibet under China 1959 – 2008
by Geshe Gedun Tharchin
Tibetans, by ancient tradition, would never think they were Chinese, nor could they ever imagine that Tibet was part of China
In 2008 China hosted the Olympic Games, with the promise of greater protection of human rights within the country. Tibet has become the main international problem, as this nation has been fully occupied by China since 1959. Due to the massive and rapid flow of Chinese immigration into the Tibetan area, the Tibetans themselves have become an ethnic minority in Tibet itself, and there is now a risk of the loss of their culture and national identity. The only chance of salvation for Tibet is that the 2008 Olympics may influence the Chinese government to ensure greater respect for Tibetan culture and people.
Thus, the whole world is watching the Chinese authorities regarding the promise made by the Chinese government in exchange for the possibility of hosting the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. But as the time for these to take place draws near, the repression in Tibet is still intensifying, and therefore many people around the world have sought to intervene in the still unresolved situation between Tibet and China. In the end, Tibetans both inside and outside the homeland lost their patience and expressed their exasperation on 14 March 2008.
The truth is that Tibet and China have been neighbours for centuries. During the 7th and 8th centuries, Tibetan dynasties inflicted a crushing defeat on China. Princess Wen Chen married the Tibetan ruler Song Tsen Gam Po and the Ra Mo Che temple was built in Lhasa at her behest. There is another temple in Lhasa built at the behest of a Nepalese princess who also married the same king. At that time, both the dynasties of China and Nepal were proud that their princesses had married the king of Tibet, also because this ensured security for their states.
Later, another Chinese princess married a king of Tibet. In these times, the relations between the two countries were based on mutual respect and the evaluation of their respective military powers. As a testimony to their common agreement, three stone pillars were erected in three different places: at the capital of Tibet, at the capital of China and along the border between the two states. The pillars were inscribed with epigraphs concerning the feelings of mutual solidarity between the two countries. A very famous verse on the pillars reads: "rGYA rGYA YUL NA sKYID, BOD BOD YUL NA sKYID", which means "Chinese are happy in China and Tibetans are happy in Tibet". On the basis of this historical event, Tibetans have always maintained that they are not Chinese and have their own national identity, different from the Chinese one.
The first invasion of Tibet was carried out by Genghis Khan in 1209 and later the Mongol Khan took over the Chinese Empire and the Mongols inherited the lineage of the Chinese dynasty. Later, when the Chinese liberated their empire from the Mongols, regaining control of it, China began to claim all the territories that had been under Mongol rule, claiming them as its own! This is the only reason why China still claims that Tibet belongs to it.
Tibetans, by ancient tradition, would never think that they are Chinese, nor could they ever imagine that Tibet is part of China. So I think that the struggle for the liberation of Tibet is a natural tendency of the Tibetan people.
History has proved that Tibetans cannot be happy under Chinese authorities, nor can the Chinese be happy under a Tibetan government. The conflict has been going on for centuries and is part of the history of both nations. This battle must go all the way, leading to absolute victory or absolute defeat: in other words, this battle will last as long as there are Tibetans. It is an issue that will be carried on from generation to generation, as part of human history.
Can dialogue be the solution? There is a great traditional obstacle to China and Tibet having a constructive dialogue. There is a Tibetan saying: "China fails in its aims because of too much suspicion and Tibet because of too much expectation". The current Sino-Tibetan dialogue began with the meeting between Mao Zedong and the Dalai Lama in Beijing in 1954 and continued until 2007 without achieving either side's objectives. So it is clear that the saying was true. It therefore seems futile to try to resolve the Sino-Tibetan conflict through dialogue.
Perhaps one possibility might be that economic-political development can bring about a radical change in the social status of Tibetan people in the future, but it cannot change Tibet's past history.
Another important question remains, concerning the Tibetan refugee families who have been living in India or Nepal for the last 50 years under the Central Tibetan Administration in Dharamsala: what will be their future? Should they continue to wait for Tibet to become free and give up their rights as local citizens, or should they integrate with local citizens?
The Fifty Years of Tibet under China 1959 – 2008
by Geshe Gedun Tharchin
Tibetans, by ancient tradition, would never think they were Chinese, nor could they ever imagine that Tibet was part of China
In 2008 China hosted the Olympic Games, with the promise of greater protection of human rights within the country. Tibet has become the main international problem, as this nation has been fully occupied by China since 1959. Due to the massive and rapid flow of Chinese immigration into the Tibetan area, the Tibetans themselves have become an ethnic minority in Tibet itself, and there is now a risk of the loss of their culture and national identity. The only chance of salvation for Tibet is that the 2008 Olympics may influence the Chinese government to ensure greater respect for Tibetan culture and people.
Thus, the whole world is watching the Chinese authorities regarding the promise made by the Chinese government in exchange for the possibility of hosting the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. But as the time for these to take place draws near, the repression in Tibet is still intensifying, and therefore many people around the world have sought to intervene in the still unresolved situation between Tibet and China. In the end, Tibetans both inside and outside the homeland lost their patience and expressed their exasperation on 14 March 2008.
The truth is that Tibet and China have been neighbours for centuries. During the 7th and 8th centuries, Tibetan dynasties inflicted a crushing defeat on China. Princess Wen Chen married the Tibetan ruler Song Tsen Gam Po and the Ra Mo Che temple was built in Lhasa at her behest. There is another temple in Lhasa built at the behest of a Nepalese princess who also married the same king. At that time, both the dynasties of China and Nepal were proud that their princesses had married the king of Tibet, also because this ensured security for their states.
Later, another Chinese princess married a king of Tibet. In these times, the relations between the two countries were based on mutual respect and the evaluation of their respective military powers. As a testimony to their common agreement, three stone pillars were erected in three different places: at the capital of Tibet, at the capital of China and along the border between the two states. The pillars were inscribed with epigraphs concerning the feelings of mutual solidarity between the two countries. A very famous verse on the pillars reads: "rGYA rGYA YUL NA sKYID, BOD BOD YUL NA sKYID", which means "Chinese are happy in China and Tibetans are happy in Tibet". On the basis of this historical event, Tibetans have always maintained that they are not Chinese and have their own national identity, different from the Chinese one.
The first invasion of Tibet was carried out by Genghis Khan in 1209 and later the Mongol Khan took over the Chinese Empire and the Mongols inherited the lineage of the Chinese dynasty. Later, when the Chinese liberated their empire from the Mongols, regaining control of it, China began to claim all the territories that had been under Mongol rule, claiming them as its own! This is the only reason why China still claims that Tibet belongs to it.
Tibetans, by ancient tradition, would never think that they are Chinese, nor could they ever imagine that Tibet is part of China. So I think that the struggle for the liberation of Tibet is a natural tendency of the Tibetan people.
History has proved that Tibetans cannot be happy under Chinese authorities, nor can the Chinese be happy under a Tibetan government. The conflict has been going on for centuries and is part of the history of both nations. This battle must go all the way, leading to absolute victory or absolute defeat: in other words, this battle will last as long as there are Tibetans. It is an issue that will be carried on from generation to generation, as part of human history.
Can dialogue be the solution? There is a great traditional obstacle to China and Tibet having a constructive dialogue. There is a Tibetan saying: "China fails in its aims because of too much suspicion and Tibet because of too much expectation". The current Sino-Tibetan dialogue began with the meeting between Mao Zedong and the Dalai Lama in Beijing in 1954 and continued until 2007 without achieving either side's objectives. So it is clear that the saying was true. It therefore seems futile to try to resolve the Sino-Tibetan conflict through dialogue.
Perhaps one possibility might be that economic-political development can bring about a radical change in the social status of Tibetan people in the future, but it cannot change Tibet's past history.
Another important question remains, concerning the Tibetan refugee families who have been living in India or Nepal for the last 50 years under the Central Tibetan Administration in Dharamsala: what will be their future? Should they continue to wait for Tibet to become free and give up their rights as local citizens, or should they integrate with local citizens?
