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Tibet
TIBET
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FACTS
Tibet is situated in the Himalayas, bordered by India,
Nepal, Bhutan and China, with an area of 2.5 million square kilometers and is
called „the roof of the world“.
It has long been an independent country, dating for
centuries. It has its own unique culture, with its own spoken and written
language, system of government, costume, architecture and its own style of
Buddhism.
Now, Tibet is an occupied colony of China. Its capital is
Lhasa. The political and religious leader is the 14th Dalai Lama, who
governs in exile in India.
HISTORY
The peaceful Buddhist country of Tibet was invaded by
Communist China in 1950. Since that time over 1.2 million Tibetans have been
killed, 6.000 monasteries have been destroyed and thousands of Tibetans have
been imprisoned.
The Dalai Lama, Tibets political and spiritual leader, fled
in 1959. He escaped to India, where he lives now along with the rest of the
Tibetan government and over 100.000 Tibetan refugees in exile. The Tibetans
continue to resist Chinese rule peacefully and nonviolently.
What is nonviolence?
The philosophy of nonviolence can be defined as the
opposition to the use of violent force in solving conflicts. Violence is not
necessarily restricted to crime, wars and conflicts between people. It also
includes environmental violence and the violence in the media. It is something
far more complex than just the raising of an arm or the pulling of a
trigger.
Since 1959, the Tibetan people have maintained a nonviolent
struggle against the Chinese occupation. They have lobbied, demonstrated and
gone on hunger strike for their freedom. In keeping their traditional Buddhist
thoughts, they always acted with love and compassion. The integrity of the Dalai
Lama and the Tibetan people stand as a model for all of us.
Nonviolent action continues all over the world today in
places like Burma, Nigeria and Tibet.
Problems with the UN
When China invaded Tibet in 1950, the Dalai Lama appealed to
the newly formed United Nations to protect Tibet’s safety. Unfortunately
nothing was done, because Tibet was not a member-state.
The Universal Decleration of Human Rights was signed and
ratified just two years before Tibet was invaded. Since that time, the Tibetans
have been denied many of their human rights. They have no freedom of religion,
association, movement or education. Tibetan women are subjected to forced
abortions and sterilization. Their natural resources have been exploited and
because of the population transfer of the Chinese into Tibet, the Tibetans
become a minority in their own land.
But because of Chinas veto-power in the UN nothing can be
done. China represents such a potentially gigantic market that it is impossible
for politicians to set any trade sanctions.
TIBET TODAY
In Tibet today, there is no freedom of speech, religion, or
press and arbitrary arrests continue. There are currently over 700 political
prisoners in Tibet. Statistics show that one out of ten Tibetans has been held
in prison or forced labor camps for periods of ten to twenty
years.
While the Chinese government claims that Tibet has always
been part of China, there is no historical evidence to support this. Tibetans as
a people are distinct from the Chinese and other neighbouring peoples. The two
cultures are completely different. Their languages do not even come from the
same root, and their food, dress, lifestyle and religion have almost no
relation.
Time is running out for the people in Tibet. The time is now
to take economic and political action against the human rights abuses comitted
by the government of China.
Tibetan Deaths Under Chinese
Occupation
(through 1988)
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CAUSE OF DEATH
Prisons and Labour
Camps
Torture
Execution
Uprisings
Starvation
Suicide
TOTAL
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TOTAL
173,221
97,731
156,758
432,705
342,970
9,002
1,212,387
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Source: International Campaign for Tibet, Washington,
DC.
HEINRICH HARRER - Seven years in
Tibet
Heinrich Harrer traveled to India on a climbing expedition
in 1939. Then World War II broke out and Harrer and all other Germans and
Austrians in India were imprisoned by the British. In 1944 Harrer escaped into
the mountains of Tibet. Two years later he arrived in the forbidden city of
Lhasa. He stayed for five years and became a friend and tutor to the teenage
Dalai Lama. Soon after the Chinese Communists invaded Tibet, Harrer left. He
wrote a book about his experiences which was translated into 48 languages and
sold three million copies.
In 1997 the Movie „Seven years in Tibet“,
starring Brad Pitt, was released. This movie educated thousands of people all
over the world about the situation in Tibet.
MILAREPA FUND
The Milarepa Fund is a non-profit organsation which was
founded in 1994 by Adam Yauch from the Beastie Boys. They support movements that
use nonviolence to stop social injustice, like the Tibetan struggle. And they
organize events like the Tibetan Freedom Concert to bring the Tibetan's
struggle against Chinese occupation attention on international level. Last year,
on the 13th of June the third Tibetan Freedom Concert took place in
Chicago, Amsterdam, Sydney and Tokyo. Some of the Artists were the Beastie Boys,
Run DMC, Rage Against The Machine, The Roots, Garbage, Blur, REM, Blondie,
Alanis Morrisette and Live.
If you would like to help visit
http://www.milarepa.org
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