The Uprising continues
Protests erupted in Eastern Tibet today in Machu, Luchu and Aba in what China calls Sichuan province but is actually the Tibetan province of Kham. And yesterday demonstrations were reported in Lithang and Sershul in Kham and at Samye monastery, south of Lhasa. Monks from Kirti monastery in Amdo also took to the streets along with lay-people and at least 6 people are reported dead. Also in Amdo, as of 4pm China time today, more than 500+ students are reported to be holding a sit-down protest at North West University for Nationalities in Lanzhou.
There is a feeling of dread in the air everywhere as news comes out that Lhasa is being locked down. There are thousands of troops in the streets. People are not allowed to leave their homes and there are house-to-house raids with the police dragging away any men who don’t have proper identity papers to be in the city. All the political prisoners are apparently locked up.
Dharamsala was swamped with news crews today here for the Dalai Lama’s press conference. When I woke up this morning there was a huge CNBC satellite newstruck at the end of the lane. By the time I got to the temple for the rally, the streets were lined with Chinese flags for us all to walk over.
Before the press conference the His Holiness gave an exclusive interview to the BBC. When asked if he called for Tibetan protesters to stop, would they stop? His Holiness said:
“I don’t know. I received a warning from Tibet. Don’t ask them to stop…I’m a spokesman for the Tibetan people, not the controller, not the master. It’s a peoples’ movement, so it’s up to them. Whatever they do, of course, I have to act according to their wish…”
And while Jacques Rogge, President sof the IOC, remains the perfect ice king and the furthest thing from a representative of Olympic values, the head of the Swiss Olympic Committee is showing some heart. He expressed concern about the situation in Tibet and told German radio that he wants the IOC to do something about it.
“The Rubicon has been crossed,” Joerg Schild said. “I can’t bring myself to say that we’re going to go there and do sport.”
Posted: March 16th, 2008 under News.
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Comments: 15
Comments
Comment from BiasedMedia
Time: March 16, 2008, 4:53 pm
Dalai Lama told BBC news that “There will be more deaths in Tibet,unless Beijing changed it’s policies towards Tibet”.
Osama Bin Laden threatened US by saying “there will be more deaths, unless Washington changes it’s policies towards Mideast”.
Sounds similar?
Comment from Free America!
Time: March 16, 2008, 5:21 pm
Native Americans have sued the US government many times for occupying their native lands. You know what the Supreme Court did? They rejected each and everyone of them. Why don’t the US people give the land back to native Americans?
Please read Johnson v. M’Intosh and Tee-Hit-Ton Indians v. United States for the “intelligent” rulings of US Supreme Court Justices. They are all white people, by the way.
Pingback from #3.2 « International Tibet Solidarity Network
Time: March 16, 2008, 6:11 pm
[…] Lhadon writes: Dharamsala was swamped with news crews today here for the Dalai Lama’s press conference. When I woke up this morning there was a huge CNBC satellite newstruck at the end of the lane. By the time I got to the temple for the rally, the streets were lined with Chinese flags for us all to walk over. […]
Comment from tsering
Time: March 16, 2008, 7:51 pm
Hi Lhadon, thanks a bunch for putting updates. gosh! it’s finals week and i can’t focus!!
Bhod Rangzen.
California
Comment from Rukasu
Time: March 17, 2008, 5:33 am
Does anyone know more of what has happened in Litang?
Comment from These Tibetans are really riots and killers!
Time: March 17, 2008, 12:01 pm
These Tibetans are really riots and killers!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6XD5A7-Fqg
Comment from Rich
Time: March 17, 2008, 8:33 pm
Nice how this video begins in the middle of the incident. There’s no telling what led up to it without some eyewitness stories or unedited video. Regardless of whether there was any immediate provocation however, no foreigner living in occupied Tibet without the consent of Tibet’s people is fully innocent. I don’t like to see people harmed like this but compared to what Tibetans have endured under China for 59 years it’s really trivial.
It’s also quite telling that the best China can muster against Tibetans with all it’s physical might and propaganda machine is a few isolated incidents like this among protests which have been overwhemlingly nonviolent. If there were really large-scale violence being committed against Chinese, surely the all-powerful Chinese government would have thousands of videos to show us rather than just one or two. After all, they don’t have to deal with smuggling their videos out past hostile authorities like Tibetans do.
Comment from Rich
Time: March 17, 2008, 8:36 pm
Oh, I just noticed BiasedMedia’s stupid comment too. The Dalai Lama’s statement was about Tibetan deaths, not Chinese deaths, so your analogy really doesn’t make sense.
Comment from S. Cai
Time: March 17, 2008, 9:20 pm
“I don’t like to see people harmed like this but compared to what Tibetans have endured under China for 59 years it’s really trivial.” You death would be pretty trivial compared to it too. Are you willing to die, Rich?
Comment from S. Cai
Time: March 17, 2008, 9:23 pm
“no foreigner living in occupied Tibet without the consent of Tibet’s people is fully innocent” OK, how guilty is such a person. Who is to say? You, me, the Tibetan rioters? o
Comment from S. Cai
Time: March 17, 2008, 9:27 pm
“propaganda machine is a few isolated incidents like this among protests which have been overwhemlingly nonviolent” On the contrary, there are plenty of footages like this which you should be able to find on youtube. They show arsons, looting, damaging privately own properties, beating innocent people, confronting violently with police, etc. What else do you expect to see, Rich? Murders and raping in public? Is this what you really expect the Tibetan monks and ordinary people to do?
Comment from S. Cai
Time: March 17, 2008, 9:30 pm
” … The Dalai Lama’s statement was about Tibetan deaths, not Chinese deaths, so your analogy really doesn’t make sense. …” I partially agree with you, Rich. But I think His Holiness was talking about both Tibetan, and non-Tibetan people in Tibet. To me, it seems that His Holiness should utilize his authority and prestige to call on its followers to abandon violence. But he didn’t.
Comment from These Tibetans are really riots and killers!
Time: March 17, 2008, 11:01 pm
peaceful tibetan protesters in belgium,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DU-Hhv_Ve54
Comment from regrettibet
Time: March 18, 2008, 2:15 am
I can say nothing more than “FREE TIBETCAMPAIGN = Terrorism!!!!”.
Comment from Rich
Time: March 18, 2008, 1:14 pm
S. Cai, I respectfully reject your allegation that any action other than physical harm to a human being is violence. Destruction of the Chinese infrastructure and businesses that dominate Tibet’s cities and marginalize Tibetans - which came to exist via hostile population transfer, recognized internationally as an act of genocide - is fully within Tibetans’ rights and is a nonviolent act. Moreover it’s the only way to undo the sinicization of Tibet that has already been done. The Chinese colonizers must go home - this is what Tibetans all over Tibet are telling your people and I hope you listen before the uprising turns into real violence.
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