UK News
Dalai Lama sees "change" in China, stresses autonomy goal
May 22, 2008, 9:06 GMT
London - The Dalai Lama said Thursday that he was 'quite optimistic' about the future of Tibet because he believed that change in China could lead to a 'more transparent' attitude over Tibet.
In a BBC interview, the Tibetan spiritual leader said he believed that China's response to the Sichuan earthquake was a sign of change.
'This I think (is) one sign that the People's Republic of China is changing, I think at least decade by decade. Hopefully now (this will) lead to a more transparent attitude in other fields, including the Tibet case.'
The exiled leader, who is on a 10-day visit to Britain, repeated the view that he wished to a see a 'middle way' of autonomy for Tibet, rather than full independence.
'We are not seeking separation,' he said, adding that it was in the interests of both China and Tibet to stay together.
'Tibetan Buddhist culture can be a great contribution to enrich (the) cultural heritage of People's Republic of China,' he said.
'Sooner or later we'll have to talk with China's government so the question of independence or separation is out of the question.'
While defence and foreign affairs should be governed by the central government, the 'the rest of the business,' such as education, environment and religious work, should be handled by Tibetans themselves, said the Dalai Lama.
'That is real, meaningful autonomy.'
However, he warned of growing frustration if there was 'no improvement' in Tibet.
Asked about opposition to his more conciliatory approach towards China, he said: 'Not only outside but even inside there are people who really are very critical about our approach, but so far OK, I think we can manage with these people.'
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Older Talkback
page: 1
'Tibets population has increased since China took power' while that is true you are ignoring the facts. China has been pumping Chinese imigrants into Tibet for years, so yes, the population has increased, but how much of the population is Tibetan?
The reason you Chinese do not have proof that 1.2 million were killed is that your media is controlled by communists and you do not have free access to information.
Have you heard of dot commies? Yesterday Cisco was explaining to Congress why their hardware is used by the Chinese government to find anyone who is not towing the party line and parroting what the government tells them to say about everything.
The reason that they do not want the Chinese to have control of Tibet is that the Tibetans see the Dalai Lama as a spiritual teacher and leader, something that the Chinese cannot even understand. That is how brainwashed the Chinese are, they cannot understand that just because someone has a religious tradition not condoned by the Chinese government, it doesn't mean they are evil or should be banned ffrom practicing their religion.
The Tibetans want their independence and it says it all that Chinese cannot understand that. It was bad enough that so many Tibetans were killed and tortured, but then the Chinese told Google that they had to ban all search results for Tineman Square and the killings of Tibetans and all the books written by Tibetans about how they were tortured and how few of them were even able to survive the camps and prisons they were put into becuase they were tortured viciously.
And Google and Cisco are complicit and so is anyone who invests in those companies.
What a disgrace.
Hmm,
China's government does not think in the same terms as many Western democracies and has a different set of objectives. One of the most important is the maintenance of order. Anything that destabilizes a region or group of people is not good. And the Chinese government knows what it is doing, they have studied history, or at least learned from it and know that two things, usually both at the same time, can cause the fall of a dynasty in China. 1) external invasion, which at this point seems unlikely to happen to China. And 2) internal rebellion, which can happen to anyone.
I don't condone the methods China has used to maintain order, including basically colonizing Tibet and making the Tibetans the minority, which is effective actually. However understanding their point of view is essential to solving problems, such as Tibet at the moment.
In my mind we cannot simply tell China what to do because we see ourselves as having the moral high ground, the situation is much more complex. Both sides involve a different set of morals and priorities, China sees itself as protecting it's people by maintaining order, and the we see China as being cruel.
It is much more important to actually sit down and talk then point and criticize. Simply because its the right thing to do and we cannot shove our opinions down China's throat.
I applaud both the Dalai Lama and the Chinese government on actually talking at all (which they have) and of at least considering middle ground (the not independence thing). It is the intelligent thing to do, simply because if Tibet did achieve independence and China was unhappy about it, Tibet would be in trouble. Having an angry neighbour is always bad, look at Kosovo and Serbia, I won't say that Kosovo had or didn't have a right to separate, but economically and politically it was a bad move. In fact I heard that the Dalai Lama had been invited to attend the Olympics. If this is true then it would be a great step forward.
Stunning: CNN Logic
0 Chinese must be against Chinese Government;
1 There are only three kinds of Chinese: Fa Lun Gong, Tibet independence group and the Chinese who are brainwashed by Chinese communist party
2 If a Chinese person is not against the Chinese government, he must have been brainwashed by Chinese communist party.
3 All actions taken by Chinese people, if not go against the Chinese government, must be arranged by Chinese government
4 Any positive news about China must be fabricated;
6 Any Chinese goods must contain lead, except for, of course, pig lead;
7 Falungong and Tibet Independence totally represent the opinion of all Chinese people, and any who are against them have been brainwashed by the communist party;
8 Tibetan people must be represented by Tibet Impendence Group, and must ask for separation;
9 Any criminals arrested by Chinese government are arrested for political reasons, and there are no other kinds of criminals in Chinese prison;
10 Any Chinese people except for Falungong and Tibet Independence must don’t know what human rights are;
11 Any actions taken by Chinese people must be extreme, except for of course falugong and Tibet independence.
page: 1
IctoanMay 22nd, 2008 - 14:18:22
You know, some thing just doesn't add up.
Dalai Lama and his exiled government want 'middle' way, autonomy rule within China. Their words do not match their actions. Tibet was given autonomy rule from 1951-1959. They had what they wanted from the Chinese government from the start!
Because the CIA wants to undermind all Communist countries during the Cold War, it contacted the Tibet government and even helped to train Tibetan guerrilas around 1956 to prepare for the 1959 uprising. The CIA's goal was not to help Tibetans but to do whatever possible to destroy China. After the failed uprising, the CIA funded the Dalai Lama in India etc.. Dalai Lama may be the man of peace he claims to be but he is still the puppet of Western propaganda against China.
It amuses me how almost every single Western article neglects to mention such important facts and only focuses on what the Exiled government says. Oh yeah cultural genocide they claims, where is the proof?
Oh and about the claim that Chinese government murdering 1.2millino Tibetans? Where is the proof? Tibetan population has grown since China took over. Why has most Western media neglected this fact? The one child policy implemented by China does not affect Tibetans. They can have more than one child because they are minorities. Is that human rights violation?
Dalai Lama doesn't want things to be political but he's using everything he could for public relation. The olympic is a perfect example. If he wants to recoil relationship with China, then his actions do not proof so. He's encouraging more Anti-China sentiments more than ever.
First he says countries should not boycott Olympic but to support it. And now he says countries should boycott. He needs to make up his mind and stop being so fickle.
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