This is the title of a post on the Spirit of the Night blog, translated by CDT. The author is a reporter for China Central Television (CCTV). (The question and answer text is taken from the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s official transcript):
Today, a CNN reporter questioned [Foreign Ministry spokesman] Qin Gang (秦刚): “How come CNN was not invited to the Lhasa trip?”
Qin Gang answered: “(sneering) We have taken note of CNN’s special interest and (raising his voice) treatment of the Lhasa incident and I can fully understand your feelings. Given the limited quotas, we could not satisfy everyone.”
CNN reporter asked again: “You may be aware that there’s now a non-governmental website, ANTI-CNN.COM, where people criticize the untrue reports on the Tibet issue by some foreign news agencies like the CNN. Do you appreciate or support this website? Is the Chinese Government providing financial or physical support to this website?”
Qin Gang: “You won’t ask that if you take a look at the reports by the western media. It is these irresponsible and unethical reports that infuriated our people to voice voluntarily their condemnation and criticism…… The Lhasa incident is … a mirror to see the true face of some people out there. It is also a textbook of bad examples, and it helps our people discern clearly the essence of the much-vaunted “justice” and “objectiveness” by some western media.”
I raised my hand for a long time and finally was called on. I asked: “Some very detailed reports suggest that the CIA could be behind the Tibet incident, and that the incident could be financed by larger international networks. Do you believe these reports? And what would be China’s response if the CIA is behind this?”
Qin Gang: “Our principled position is that Tibet has been an inalienable part of China since ancient times. Since when did the so-called “Tibet Independence” come up? I suggest you look up the source of ‘Tibet Independence‘ in historical archive. You will find that there were no such words as “Tibet Independence” a century ago. Maybe you can do some homework, study historical archive and find out the first person to come up with “Tibet Independence”. This could help you getting closer to the truth in covering issues relating to Tibet and the Dalai Lama.
What happens in Tibet is an internal affair of China. The Chinese Government resolutely opposes any interference in the Tibet issue, which is our internal affair. We urge relevant countries to respect China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, respect the universally recognized norms governing international relations, and do not support the Dalai Clique’s separatist activities in any form under any excuse. I would like to stress that the Chinese Government has the determination and capability to safeguard our sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
This is obviously a positive answer to my question. In diplomatic language, this says clearly enough that the Chinese government does not think the CIA played a positive role in this event. And the Chinese government has reminded [the US government] of this already.
Therefore, the CIA is the backing force of the Tibetan independence movement. It backs the Dalai clique. It is home for all people who dream of splitting China — I believe that.
