The Gulf Between Tibet and Its Exiles
In the Far Eastern Economic Review, Tibet scholar Tsering Shakya counters arguments made in recent articles that the recent unrest in Tibetan areas was instigated by groups funded by the U.S. government, and discusses the gaps between Tibetans in Tibet and those living abroad:
Share ThisThe arguments made by Mr. Engdahl and repeated by Mr. Ching are just insinuations; the only linkage is that established in their minds. Behind their thinking, and that of the Chinese authorities (who claim that all unrest in Tibet has been instigated by outsiders ranging from the CIA to the Dalai Lama), is a larger set of presumptions that exile Tibetan groups are involved in political activities within Tibet.
This presupposes that there is a more or less free flow of information between India and Tibet. This, however, is true in only a limited way. To fully establish any kind of link between either the exile groups, events inside Tibet or Western interests, one needs to have some understanding of the culture and social milieu in which these groups operate. Also, there has to be some understanding of the nature and composition of Tibetans in India and abroad.
The refugees in India have developed an ideology and forged a nationalistic sentiment such that they have come to see themselves as defenders of Tibet and the Tibetan people. On some occasions this has verged on a view where they see themselves as the “true” representatives of the Tibetans and view the Tibetans inside Tibet as merely passive, oppressed victims. This has often led to a patronizing attitude towards the Tibetans in Tibet. As a result, the cultural and social gap between the Tibetans inside and those outside Tibet is huge.
Origin: Tsering Shakya, Far Eastern Economic Review
POSTED COMMENTS: 2 Responses
Mr. Tsering Shakya proved nothing.
He actually admitted that there is a possibility that these lamas who fled to India could have had something to do with the recent riot in Tibet.
As we all know, thousands of Tibetan “refugees” “flee” to India every year. But according to some Western scholars’ research, many of these “refugees” (pilgrims) return to Tibet after they received blessing from the Dalai Lama. How hard is it for these lamas to train a few agents and send them back to Tibet? Sure you can argue that these lamas don’t receive funds directly from the West, but what about their connection with the government in exile? You don’t have to be a genius to figure this out.
Mr. Tsering Shakya appears utterly unconvincing in his counter-arguments, close to the CCP version in terms of its one-sidedness.
say, what about the fact that VOA and Radio Free Asia dramatically increased broadcasting hours in Tibet shortly before the riot took place, to say the least? so much was actually revealed in TYC’s spokesman’s interview given to the western media that they were pushing something to break through in the Olympic year, the so called “great uprising of Tibetan people.” Tibetan exile government’s contact with Tibet in China was so obvious–just think about the numbers of death and police suppression in Tibet during recent riots, almost immediately reported to the media from Tibetan Exile government.
No matter how wide the gap between Tibetans inside and outside China, it should be a common sense that the Free Tibet overseas would be meaningless if it is not connected to the mainland Tibetans.
The problem is that too biased views cannot help with the situation at all.