Chinese Tibet

We first traveled in Tibetan regions of China and later visited Tibetan refuges in India. Consequently we have two very different vantage points regarding the Chinese rule in Tibet.

Tibet, according to the Chinese

While in China, we saw considerable economic freedom, and a degree of freedom of speech that startled us. We have already described the developing areas as being the most capitalistic country we have ever visited. Hand-in-hand comes a certain amount of education and freedom of expression. In the prospering areas we heard open discussion of many concerns.

But significantly, we heard little disillusionment with the current Communist leadership. We heard about the old days, when the party controlled every aspect of someone's life, including where you could work, if you could travel, what you could buy. Even who you associated with and what you said were always closely watched. We talked openly with people about the colossal failures of the Great Leap Forward (farming reform that cost 10 million lives) and the Cultural Revolution (extra-governmental gangs loyal to Mao that killed or tortured another 10 million, especially the educated or intellectuals). We heard about the horror stories of the past.

But people viewed these as problems of the past (the Gang of Four). We met many people with ideas of how China should grow and change, but no one seemed to sincerely wish for a multi-party democracy. Some even gave very credible explanations why one-party rule is best for China (the history of foreign invasion, the low level of education, the just emerging free press, the civil war during that last time of two-parties,...). Generally the Chinese people were much more interested in economic reform and development than political issues.

After the Chinese invaded the Kingdom of Tibet in the 1950's, Tibet was partitioned into several pieces. We were in the parts of Tibet that were merged into adjacent provinces. When we spent time deep in Yunan and Sichuan provinces we saw little of this recent economic development, at least at an individual level. There were large scale government projects, such as road building or hydroelectric plants. There were people working hard on road construction crews. But there was little development for individual families. There were exceptions (like Karen), but most people lived very simple farm lives.

The majority Han Chinese outside of this region have been told and believe that the previous TibetanKingdom was oppressive and that China liberated the region. Also, they believe that the Tibetan people were very backward and the Chinese government is spending huge sums to provide education, medical care and development, subsidizing the people of this backward area.

Tibet, according to the Tibetan exiles

The Tibetans tell a different story. The invasion of the Chinese army left a million Tibetans dead, most of whom had no weapons other than a dagger or spear. The Chinese subsequently have opened mines to rich mineral areas, deforested the mountains, and dammed the river for hydro power. Roadways were built to support the exploitation of the resources. Claiming the roads were to benefit the Tibetans, the Chinese forced the locals to work voluntarily (meaning unpaid) on the road construction under brutal conditions under which many perished. The minerals and timber were transported on these roads to greater China for use by the Han Chinese.

For administration and exploitation of the resources, the Chinese settled many Han Chinese in the region. Job qualifications were manipulated to ensure that the Chinese received the better jobs, and the Tibetans fell deeper into poverty. To stamp out the Tibetan culture, schools taught only Chinese and Chinese language skills were required for jobs. Tibetan religious practices were banned and monks and nuns tortured and killed. Many stories are particularly gruesome and revolting.

Such practices continue today in Tibet. The Han are now a majority, and many younger Tibetans have accepted the Chinese culture and language as the only way to survive. Those who attempt to preserve Tibetan culture continue to disappear, and Tibetans have no more freedoms than the Chinese did during the Cultural Revolution. The atrocities that the Chinese believe are part of a distant past still occur daily in Tibet, where government controls are just as oppressive as they ever were in China.

Westerners who visit Lhasa in Tibet are treated to religious shows at the old Palace, but the monks are monks in name only and no serious practice is allowed. Tibetans who associate with the Westerners are punished. We read of an incident with a group from the monastery that we stayed at in Nepal. The Western group was not stopped from conducting a religious ceremony at the Buddhist stupa. Afterwards, one of the western women stepped into a nearby shop to purchase a beverage. As the Westerners departed, the police closed the shop and punished the shopkeeper for subversive activity.

Ironically, the Tibetans have flourished outside of Tibet. The world has come to know the gentle and peaceful nature of their culture and religion, even awarding their spiritual leader the Dali Lama a Nobel Peace Prize.

In some other areas of the world, international pressure has helped to stop overt oppression of a peaceful people --for example in South Africa. The world community is quick to criticize people who take to arms to resolve their disagreements, and has implored people to remain non-violent or lose international support. This puzzles the Tibetans, who see themselves as the perfect example of non-violent protestors. With nearly 10 million Tibetans now killed, tortured or missing at the hands of the Chinese, the Tibetans still wait for the world to take interest in their plight. Instead, China is rapidly gaining acceptance in the world, including admission to the WTO (World Trade Organization) and hosting the 1998 Olympics.

Personally, I think that it is easier to influence friends rather than enemies, and that allowing China to join the nations of the world is a positive step. However, it does appear that the plight of Tibetans is one that the international community would prefer to ignore. The reality of foreign policy is that it is always an extension of domestic policy, power and economics, and Tibet is not strategically important to the rest of the world. That sad reality leaves millions of exiles with no real idea of what to do to stop the oppression.