Dear Yannan and citters interested in human rights in Tibet and China, 

Thank you for your email and please accept my apologies if I have
offended you in any way, my intention is to help create a more open and
sustainable world based on mutual respect. 

In common with emails I have received from Chinese colleagues here at
Swansea your has prompted me to really think about how I use email as
well as how I think and feel about Tibet and China. In addition to the
links you sent, my colleagues suggested: http://www.anti-cnn.com/ as a
site to help provide an alternative view of the recent uprisings.

The original email was actually not my own words, but a forwarded email
from Avaaz. This could have been clearer and I apologise for any
confusion. 

Western, Chinesee and Tibetan media, governments and NGOs are often
presenting one-sided accounts to serve what they see as their own
interests. There remains, however, an urgent need for all parties and
the global community to come together over this issue. I appreciate the
role China plays in the global economy and the huge chages currently
taking place there. I hope that this and the Olympics can help to bring
about a more open form of governance in which human rights and
ecological health are promoted.

I feel we currently have an important opportunity to ask questions about
what's going on, not only in Tibet and China, but in our own countries
and indeed our hearts and minds! I agree that there is a danger that,
for example, anti-chinese prejudice can be promoted if we act
uncritically. 

Is any organisation calling for a referendum asking people in Tibet what
they want? 

I note with humility that viturally all governments, including the UK,
are involved in human rights abuses direclty and indirectly and I aim to
speak up and act whenever I can to address these. It is clear to me that
there is a case for China to improve its human rights record, whilst
Tibetans have suffered human rights abuses, so too have thousands of
Chinese and ultimately China as a nation and the world suffer from this.

'By allowing Beijing to host the Games you will help the development of
human rights.'
  
Liu Jingmin, then Vice President of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Bid
Committee - April 2001

Human Rights Watch has called upon the UN Human Rights Council to
'actively engage on serious human rights abuses wherever they occur,
including the current crisis in Tibet'
http://hrw.org/doc/?t=asia&c=china

Independent Trade uniions are illegal in China e.g. see Chan, A. (1998)
Labor Standards and Human Rights: The Case of Chinese Workers Under
Market Socialism. Human Rights Quarterly 20.4 886-904.

Other areas of human rights concern include the extensive use of torture
within the criminal justice system, holding people without trial,
persecution of those critical of Government/human rights activists, lack
of religious freedom and the extensive, and expanding use of the death
penalty, which amounts to more deaths than the rest of the world
combined.

See e.g. http://www.amnesty.org.uk/content.asp?CategoryID=11204

Also Foot,R. (2000) Rights Beyond Borders: The Global Community and the
Struggle Over Human Rights in China 

Yours for a sustainable world, Larch

Dr. Larch Maxey
Swansea University/Prifysgol Abertawe
[log in to unmask]

www.lammas.org.uk


-----Original Message-----
From: Yannan Ding [mailto:[log in to unmask]] 
Sent: 30 March 2008 22:49
To: Maxey L.
Cc: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Tibet - support the Dalai Lama

Apologies for cross posting.


Dear critical-geographers and geography-lovers,

  It didn't surprise me to get Mr. Larch Maxey's email. Personally I  
respect him, because he had showed his concern on human rights, which  
is a good thing. Nevertheless, I can hardly agree with Mr. Maxey on  
two points: first, to make judgment on problematic, if not false,  
basis; second, to intentionally make use of this academic network and  
get it interwoven with political affairs.
  As to the second point, it is obviously different from the petitions  
for academic affairs as we did before; instead, it is very likely  
leading to a split between geographers holding different opinions on  
the situation of Tibet. In another word, it has much to do with the  
facts happened to Tibet recently and in the past centuries. As long as  
this mailing list is used for such provocative purpose, I won't  
hesitate to use my right to clarify the situation.

  1, It is the Dalai Lama and his fellows who rejected time after time  
the opportunity of opening a dialogue. Notwithstanding the violent  
riot on March 14, 2008, the speaker of the Foreign Ministry of China  
stated clearly at least 2 times (in the news press on 25th and 27th  
March) that the chance for a dialogue is still open.
  On the other hand, the premise the Dalai Lama set for dialogue is  
so-called 'Grand Tibet', which includes not only Tibet proper, but  
also part of the 3 adjacent provinces (Sichuan, Qinghai and Gansu).  
Just imagine the difficulties that might be arose by a new 'Grand  
Quebec', including Ontario, New Brunswick and Newfoundland & Labrador.
  2, The riot on March 14 was a brutal one against common citizens  
indiscriminating their races. Those mobs not only attacked Chinese,  
but also Hui (Muslim), Tibetan people and Japanese. Two weeks after  
the riot, some mass media who were once 'excited' (as used by Deutsche  
Welle) by the turbulence became more or less objective to the situation.
  According to two journalists of the Economist (in English) and the  
Die Zeit (in German) and some others who witnessed the riot, it is the  
mobs that were killing citizens on streets, stealing commodities from  
shops, setting fire to shops, cars, hospitals and schools. The  
policemen and paramilitaries had been restrained and well-disciplined  
to pacify the situation. See the references at the end of this letter  
for more information from international observers.
  3, Old people are respected in China. I have no personal hostility  
with the Dalai Lama; quite on the contrary, I respect him as an old  
man and a Buddhist. Given the importance of the Dalai Lama, the  
violent riot in Lhasa implies 2 possibilities: the Dalai Lama is  
either involved or not. If so, then he betrayed his value of peace and  
non-violence. If not, that means he has NOTHING to do with the mobs  
killing and burning in Lhasa, and those who attacked Chinese embassies  
in 17 cities in Europe, America and Canada. In this case, the Dalai  
Lama and those radical Tibetans (mostly young people) should be taken  
separately. Hardly is there a government in this world would give way  
to the threat from radical separatist or terrorist.
  4, A brief review of history will do help to understand the  
relationship between the local Tibet and the central government. Tibet  
had been a part of China since middle 13th century. Prior to that,  
Tibet was the ally of the Chinese Tang dynasty. In the year 1653 the  
fifth Dalai Lama was officiated by the central government, and then  
the fifth Panchen Erdeni was also officiated in 1713. Since then, the  
relationship between the local government of Tibet and the central  
government had been normalized. International adventurers penetrated  
Tibet in the first half of the 20th century.
  With the support from CIA, the Dalai Lama broke the treaty and  
initiated civil war in 1959. Soon after, he went to India. The Dalai  
Lama admitted that he was supported by CIA in a report of the New York  
Times, and his army was trained in the U.S. Tibet was far from the  
imagination of a pastoral fairyland which might be hold by some  
'peace-lovers'. Please refer to the history of Tibet.
  Last but not least, there is no direct cause of the riot on March  
14, neither biased policy nor folk conflict. The peace and social  
order was suddenly destroyed by collective violence. Young people and  
some Lamas became killer. One of the most tragic scenes is that 5  
girls (including Tibetan) at the age around 20 were burnt to death by  
3 Tibetan girls just at the same age! The problem in Lhasa is not so  
much national conflict as confusion and anxious toward modernization.
  5, It seems that Mr. Maxey had taken international trade and the  
Olympics as some kinds of charity or financial aid. If not, it's  
really difficult to understand why the two were used as a tool to  
coerce the Chinese central government (as symbolized with President Hu  
Jintao in Mr. Maxey's email) to cooperate. As a Chinese whose  
relatives are working for the global market, I can assure you the  
activity of purchasing something 'Made in China' is far from CHARITY  
as the Earth is away from the Jupiter. Tens of thousands of workers  
are working with their sweat and blood in China and also many other  
developing countries. I wonder whether Mr. Maxey is willing to lobby  
multi-national companies to pay more to the workers and improve their  
working condition. After all, that is more constructive to human rights.
  6, Another interesting thing is that when challenged with the  
neutrality and objectivity by some oversea Chinese students, media  
companies like CNN asserted that those students were employed by the  
Chinese government. Well, to be prudent, I can not deny the  
possibility, but that does NOT apply to me. I doubt CNN might had  
underrated the spontaneous sense of Chinese students in pursuing  
justice.
  After 2 days' reading, browsing and writing, I feel it's not easy to  
expect for less prejudice. Alas, the Cold War is gone for nearly 2  
decades, but some people still can't help jumping into terrifying  
imagination of an evil 'Other'. In fact, China is not the only to  
benefit from this dubious honor.

  Trust asks for mutual understanding. Unfortunately, some of the mass  
media made famous 'mistakes' during the riot of Lhasa two weeks ago.  
It's not the mistake of tendency, but of basic facts. Nevertheless, I  
am still confident that geographers will cherish the reputation as  
scientist, and will not be indiscreet.
  Support the Dalai Lama or not, buy something 'Made in China' or not,  
boycott the Olympics or not, and so on and so on. After all, it's up  
to every single one. As a student, what I can do is quite limited, but  
I want to articulate another viewpoint. Because I do believe a good  
judgment could only be based on a full picture.
  I trust in you all.


Sincerely,
Yannan Ding



Reference:
  Violence in Lhasa:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btX28vIrh2w&feature=user

  Witness in Lhasa:
http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10875823&m
ode=comment
http://www.zeit.de/2008/13/Tibet (in German)
http://kadfly.blogspot.com/
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/20/tibet.miles.interview/
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=88236362

'Mistakes' made by some media:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSQnK5FcKas&feature=related

  History of Tibet:
  Friendly Feudalism: The Tibet Myth (by Michael Parenti)
http://www.michaelparenti.org/Tibet.html
  [Tibet Diary]- Episode 1 ~6
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4pI4SB4GXho&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CA6YLpG1pPw&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vaQBz2CzsA&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZkAWhhiDkc&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y1ZwsgSOsjo&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnPlAoLeAy8&feature=related

  Goodbye to Cold War?
  CIA, Tibet and the Dalai Lama
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0CEFD61538F931A35753C1A
96E958260
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOhDBo6x2ZY
  Why They Hate China-Well, you have to hate someone (by Justin
Raimondo)
http://www.antiwar.com/justin/?articleid=12585




Quoting "Maxey L." <[log in to unmask]>:

>
>
> Hi,
>
> I just signed an urgent petition calling on the Chinese government to
> respect human rights in Tibet and dialogue with the Dalai Lama. This
is
> really important, and I thought you might want to take action:
>
> http://www.avaaz.org/en/tibet_end_the_violence/98.php/?cl_tf_sign=1
>
> After decades of repression, the Tibetans are sending out a global cry
> for change. Unrest is spreading across Tibet and neighbouring regions,
> and the Chinese regime is right now making a crucial choice between
> escalating repression or dialogue.
>
> President Hu Jintao needs to hear that "Made in China" exports and the
> upcoming Olympics in Beijing will have the support of the world's
people
> only if he chooses dialogue. But it will take an avalanche of global
> people power to get his attention. Click below to sign the
petition--in
> just 7 days, the campaign is over half way to the goal of 2 million
> signatures!
>
> http://www.avaaz.org/en/tibet_end_the_violence/98.php/?cl_tf_sign=1
>
> Thank you so much for your help - forward this email to friends!
>
> Avaaz will not send you further messages without your consent.
>
>



-- 
Yannan Ding
Doctoral student
Institute for Social and Economic Geography
KU Leuven
Belgium

Disclaimer: http://www.kuleuven.be/cwis/email_disclaimer.htm