March 10th 2011

March 10th (this Thursday) marks 52 years after uprising started in Tibet on March 10th, 1959.

Most people I've talked to don't even know where Tibet is, let alone what is happening there. There is mass genocide and America isn't doing anything to help it. Its true that we have our own situations to handle right now but I don't think that Tibet's oppression should have lasted for 52 years. China has prevented the citizens from having any basic human rights. The president of China came to the United States to meet with President Obama and said that he was going to give China more human rights... but I don't think that he was talking about Tibetans when he said that. The government has turned Tibet into a tourist attraction for people to visit and see nothing is wrong. Tibetans are not allowed to practice organized religion, ask for money from visitors, or even speak their own language. The Chinese government is trying to make them only speak Mandarin which would wipe out Tibetans cultural history forever. Tibetans are fighting back, now more than ever. I think its time that we did something also.

Tomorrow marks the 52nd year of uprising, lets make it the last.

I challenge you to tell at least 3 people a significant fact you learned from this blog or something you learned from researching Tibetan culture. Tell those 3 people to tell 3 more people and so on and so forth. I challenge you to inform people of the oppression taking place and the murdering of innocent monks happening right before our eyes. Lets take a step in the positive direction by fighting for the people who can't be heard, for the children who can't defend themselves, and for the Country that wants to be free. (For more information go to Students for a Free Tibet )

FREE TIBET.

Tibetans' Need for Understanding

Not many people know about Tibetans and their culture. When was the last time you saw them on the news? Their culture is currently being bulldozed because the Chinese government wants to have a uniform nation, which includes a common language, culture, and leader. The naïveté  of American’s knowledge of the world is troubling because they are unable to see what’s right outside their doorstep. There is murder, genocide, and cultural extinction, the citizens of Tibet need our help.

 Tibet sits at the top of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Tibet was the highest independent nation in the world with an average altitude of over 4,000 meters. It was a very peaceful nation with its own government and social rankings. The higher a persons’ rank in their society, the more embellished and grand their hat would be. The ruler of the nation was not decided through elections or by a person’s family tree but by discovering the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama. The Dalai Lama was the spiritual and temporal leader of Tibet. The People’s Liberation Army of China invaded Tibet in 1949 because they felt the Tibetan region rightfully belonged to them. The Tibetans did not go down without a fight but they were peaceful people so they were slaughtered by the Chinese invaders. As a direct result of the 1949 invasion of Tibet, 1.2 million Tibetans have died. The Dalai Lama has been forced to leave Tibet because it has become too unsafe for him to live there because of persecution by the Chinese.The Dalai Lama travels around the world to spread the teachings of Buddhism and peace. He has been forced to become a politician for the rights of his people. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and currently receives great praise from his followers. I got a chance to see him in person and listen to his teachings. He taught about being compassionate to others and about being a good person and listener. He is a very humble and comedic individual. You can feel the audiences great respect and admiration for him when he speaks. He is a very wise man who is getting old. The people of Tibet are afraid, for when he dies, the Chinese government will do whatever they can to prevent the next Dalai Lama from rising to power. It is said that when the 14th Dalai Lama dies, there will be no more hope for the Tibetan people.
    

After Tibet was taken by China, it was renamed The Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR). The largest city in TAR is Lhasa which has an urban population of 373,000. The citizens of Lhasa and the smaller cities in TAR participate in weaving, farming, animal husbandry, leather making, and the manufacturing of other materials. These factors of production are great because there is a growing tourist market in TAR. Tourists come mainly to see the Potala Palace in Lhasa (on right). The Chinese government feels if they show how productive and successful the Tibetans are being, Westerners will be less likely to protest Chinese control. It is said that there are government officials hiding amongst the Tibetans and if you ask them how they feel about the Chinese rule, you will be arrested and tried for conspiring against the Chinese government.

“We urge China to respect the fundamental and universally recognized right of all of its citizens to peacefully express their political and religious views, and we call on China to release monks and others who have been detained solely for the peaceful expression of their views.” -Condoleezza Rice

It is very difficult to determine what a day in the life is like for a citizen of Tibet but it is known that life has been a struggle for them. Tibetans are not allowed to express their opinions, practice their prayers, or even speak their native language.

The Peoples Republic of China has stated that they want to change the language in TAR from Tibetan to Mandarin. Tibetans and supporters of freedom in Tibet say that they are taking this too far and need to leave them alone because their entire culture is passed down through their oral traditions. There are many other refugees who have left Tibet and are doing everything in their power to preserve what they can of their quickly fading culture.

Since it is impossible for people in TAR to protest, they need our help to demand freedom. I am a member of Students for a Free Tibet (SFT) which is an organization of people to fight for the release of people who were imprisoned for speaking against the Chinese government. The was also designed to be a central hub for people who are helping spread awareness about the problems Tibetans are facing and the genocide happening in China. More and more people in the world are taking a stand for freedom everyday. But they can’t do it alone. Please visit www.freetibet.org or www.studentsforafreetibet.org for more information on what you can do to give these people a voice. The world needs you.

Why Tibet?

(Directly borrowed from http://freetibet.snappages.com/blog/2005/05/24/why-should-anyone-especially-you-care-about-tibet)

"If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion." -His Holiness the Dalai Lama

Some Startling Facts

1. The peaceful Buddhist country of Tibet was invaded by Communists China in 1949. Since that time, over 1.2 million Tibetans have been killed, over 6000 monasteries have been destroyed, and thousands of Tibetans have been imprisoned.

2. In Tibet today, there is no freedom of speech, religion, or press and arbitrary dissident continues.

3. The Dalai Lama, Tibet's political and spiritual leader, fled to India in 1959. He now lives among over 100,000 other Tibetan refugees and their government in exile.

4. Forced abortion, sterilization of Tibetan women and the transfer of low income Chinese citizens threaten the survival of Tibet's unique culture. In some Tibetan provinces, Chinese settlers outnumber Tibetans 7 to 1.

5. Within China itself, massive human rights abuses continue. It is estimated that there up to twenty million Chinese citizens working in prison camps.

6. Most of the Tibetan plateau lies above 14,000 feet. Tibet is the source of five of Asia's greatest rivers, which over 2 billion people depend upon. Since 1959, the Chinese government estimates that they have removed over $54 billion worth of timber. Over 80% of their forests have been destroyed, and large amounts of nuclear and toxic waste have been disposed of in Tibet.

7. Despite these facts and figures, the US government and US corporations continue to support China economically. This shows their blatant lack of respect for these critical issues of political and religious freedom and human rights.



Yes, things are bad, but you may still ask, why Tibet? There are hundreds of other countries in which equal or worse environmental and human rights devastation has occurred. Why Tibet? Tibet can be used as the catalyst for change in human rights, woman's rights, political, religious and cultural freedom across the globe. Through a concerted effort, the citizens of Earth can stand up and say "NO!" to the corporations and governments that continue to abuse it's people and misuse it's resources. The struggles in Tibet are symbolic for every human rights struggle. Please, get involved. There is only a limited time left until there will longer be a Tibet to save.

Tibet is a very culturally rich country that has a very deep history. If the Chinese Government stays in Tibet, they could loose all of the history they had. Please help educate others on this growing issue in Asia. Please feel free to visit the following informative sites:


http://www.studentsforafreetibet.org/
http://www.tibet.net/en/index.php
http://www.freetibet.org/

"If you can, help others; if you cannot do that, at least do not harm them." -His Holiness the Dalai Lama