 |
 |
Ahchee, thank you for your message to the forum and the link to the PBS Discussion thread – it is indeed useful to gain some insight into the complexities of the relationship between Han Chinese and Tibetan peoples and active NGO/community involvement in the TAR (Tibetan Autonomous Region). I think you are right, there is a tendency to view the Tibet/China relationship in very black and white, homogenising terms. This is partly because, in terms of liberal democratic values, it is a black and white issue, 50 years ago one party invaded and occupied another party and sustains that occupation through the application of the states monopoly on “legitimate” force. That there is a much more messy and highly contested history before the occupation/narrative of “liberation not occupation”, and an even more contested one since evidently suggests simple narratives that serve to render the subject legible (2.74 million people in Tibet, 1.3 billion people in China) also writes out the messy realities of, as per your example, Han people working with and to help people in the TAR. So you are quite correct that there is a lack of information for many people in the west on which to base their judgements about the rights and wrongs of the Tibet situation (not that having more information would necessarily fundamentally change their judgements!, e.g. viewing Amnesty International reports). However, it seems to me that the Chinese state reaps what it sows in this regard. The attempt to tightly regulate, indeed to actually prevent reporting from Tibet has backfired and the Chinese authorities and the TAR administration are suffering as a result. I’ve seen numerous internet posts from Chinese nationals in the diaspora, frustrated by the failure of the western media to report on the nature and scale of protests and violence associated with these directed at Han and Hui people and businesses. The trouble is that when the principal source of news is government endorsed and officially sanctioned it really is not surprising that western media and their audiences view such news with suspicion and scepticism, particularly given the most iconic image of China in the last 20 years is a lone protestor facing down a tank in Tiananmen Square. When western media sources, instead of reporting “the news” (the story of the event), report on reports of the news (i.e. “140 dead in Lhasa, it is reported by”) or reports on itself as the news (“We have tried to enter Lhasa and been turned back. What is it the Chinese authorities don’t want us to see?”) because they are prevented from accessing the site then it is unsurprising a (from your perspective) distorted picture of the events emerges. In such circumstances surely the partial reporting you critique, the failure to also report the “official” news, is a product of the actions of the authorities that made a choice to restrict the movement of journalists in the first place? As regards your question “How do Tibetans feel about these changes” and “can the Dalai Lama and other exiled 'elites' represent all Tibetans?” – No he can’t. But he can serve as a figurehead for a movement that seeks to allow the Tibetan people themselves to decide for themselves how they are to be represented. Clearly within a liberal democratic paradigm it would be far better to ask the people of the TAR what they think and how they feel about the current situation. Maybe you can assist here. Presumably the CCP has canvassed opinion of people in the TAR, it has asked them whether the current political arrangement suits them, whether they would prefer to secede from China or remain as they are, whether they would like to see the Dalai Lama and the rest of the Tibetan diaspora return from exile, whether economic growth and massive infrastructure investment and construction is the main priority etc.? My suspicion is that neither of us truly know how Tibetans feel about things*, and for that matter nor do the CCP, but I’d be interested if you could point us towards such reports and surveys. Of course this is a slightly cheeky request since my own cultural prejudices lead me to doubt that such opinions have been canvassed or reported, but I would look positively on being proved wrong. As regards brutal attacks on ordinary citizens and torch runners. Torch bearers have been “hassled” but I am not aware of a “brutal attack” on them. Pro-Tibetan supporters however, certainly in the streets of London, seemed to receive very heavy handed treatment from the police and officials protecting the “sacred flame”. Bottom line is the protest we have seen has been activism, not standing around chanting songs and hoping the worlds (wests) media will find a chorus of “We Shall Overcome” enthralling enough to film and broadcast, but actions that grab the attention and get the message across. It seems evident its been an extremely successful campaign, a rare opportunity for the voice of many Tibetans and those that seek to support them to be heard and one that is having, superficially anyway, direct effects on the politicians and people involved in the Olympic games. You might think it an abuse of the Olympic spirit but I say good on ‘em. If as a by-product people like yourself choose to communicate more fully and fulsomely about the perspective of individual Chinese people on such events (whether as a result you succeed in persuading people to change their perception of China and its human rights record or not) that seems to me all to the good. Keep it up. But expect to see more “critical” comments in the coming months. Respectfully, Marc Welsh * (as the occupied “we”, westerners, are concerned with the Tibetans feelings, other Chinese feelings about the “splitters” are of secondary interest as in theory we hold the right of self-determination to be paramount. Except when we don’t!) _____ From: A forum for critical and radical geographers [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of ahchee Liu Sent: 10 April 2008 12:29 To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: Help me support Team Tibet! It's not a black or white issue!! This critical geographer forum is apparently overwhelmed by lofty moral defenders. This world is so lucky to have so many people who are truly care for human rights in places like China, Palestine, Burma. One thing I am not quite sure is how much those supporters for Team Tibet know about Tibet and the human rights situation in Tibet. And where do they get these information from? Surely, the official reports in China are inevitably partial. But how reliable is the western media? What disappointed me the most is that media like BBC and CNN in such ‘democratic’ countries even couldn’t/dare not to show the full picture of the whole event. Why scenes of monks attacking Han citizens and tourists in the Lhasa riots and scenes of pro-China demonstrators in the London torch relay were deliberately removed from BBC reports to mislead audience? The only explanation I can think of is that they do not want to face the truth. Obviously, this all has something to do with the long existing prejudice against China and other third world countries. Disguising obvious facts only show the lack of confidence and the lack of genuine good wills for human rights in Tibet. Accusing pro-China demonstrators being manicuplated by Chinese government is truely unfair and unwise too. The Tibet issue is not truely black or white. Before jumping into the pro-Tibet queue, how many people have ever seriously think through these questions: How things have been changed since Tibet under the CCP rules? How Tibetans feel about these changes? Can Dali Lama and other exiled 'elites' represent all Tibetans? Why ordinary citizens and torch runners are brutally attacked by pro-Tibet protestors? Is this a peaceful protest or vicious defiance? Do human rights of Tibetans have to be achieved by violating and threatening human rights of others? Is torch relay chaos an embarrassment for China or an embarrassment for those who viciously abuse the Olympic spirit? It is necessary for critical geographers who genuinely care for Tibetans, care for human rights, to gather information from both sides to form their own judgments. Following website with some good discussions about the Tibet issue could be a start. <http://discussions.pbs.org/viewtopic.pbs?t=68073&postdays=0&postorder=asc&t opic_view=&start=90&sid=ebfca82df9afec57769944971589fb66> http://discussions.pbs.org/viewtopic.pbs?t=68073 <http://discussions.pbs.org/viewtopic.pbs?t=68073&postdays=0&postorder=asc&t opic_view=&start=90&sid=ebfca82df9afec57769944971589fb66> &postdays=0&postorder=asc&topic_view=&start=90&sid=ebfca82df9afec57769944971 589fb66 (PBS Discussions Discussion Forums on pbs.org) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSQnK5FcKas Ahchee ------------------------------------------------------------------- 想玩得精彩？快来惠普"我的电脑 我的舞台"( http://d1.sina.com.cn/sina/limeng3/mail_zhuiyu/2008/mail_zhuiyu_20080407.htm l ) ------------------------------------------------------------------- 注册新浪2G免费邮箱（http://mail.sina.com.cn/）