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Joo Rip Gwa Rhhee
Joined: 25 May 2003
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 Posted: Fri Apr 01, 2005 3:48 am Post subject: Don't Abandon Tibet |
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AFTER TIANANMEN
Don't Abandon Tibet
Why Europe must not lift the arms embargo on China.
BY RICHARD GERE
Thursday, March 31, 2005 12:01 a.m. EST
I was in Europe this month to receive an award from the Geuzen Resistance 1940-1945 Foundation on behalf of the International Campaign for Tibet. The Geuzen Medal honors the memory of Dutch resistance heroes who fought the Nazis by recognizing those today who resist repression, discrimination and racism, and the Campaign was recognized for promoting human rights and self-determination in Tibet through nonviolent means. It was a very proud moment for those of us who care deeply about Tibet and the brave Tibetan people--and certainly for me as the Campaign's chairman.
The cause of Tibet is now at a critical juncture. After decades of diplomatic stalemate, talks began again in 2002 between Beijing and the Dalai Lama's envoy, Lodi Gyari. Mr. Gyari described the latest round of talks last year as the most serious exchange of views so far. As the Dalai Lama has repeatedly stated for decades now, the issue is not Tibetan independence from China but rather genuine Tibetan autonomy within the overall structure of a sovereign but benevolent China. This is not unreasonable or unobtainable. The model of Hong Kong certainly comes to mind.
So now, more than ever, Beijing needs to feel outside pressure if we are to ensure that talks continue. Europe and Washington's most substantial means for pressure is certainly the weapons embargo, which they imposed on China after the Tiananmen Square demonstrations in 1989. Yet the EU is now seriously considering lifting the embargo--it should not. Sixteen years later, China still has not substantively addressed the human rights abuses that led to the embargo, and, in fact, many of those involved in the 1989 demonstrations continue to linger in prison. In Tibet itself, severe restrictions on freedom of expression, association and religion remain in place. This record should not be rewarded with weapons exports.
All the more so since China enacted an anti-secession law providing it with the legal authority to attack Taiwan should it proceed further toward self-rule. The timing of this legislation contains a lesson for the EU. It was unthinkable until now because China lacked the capability to launch an invasion across the 100 miles of the Taiwan Strait. However, Beijing has invested billions of dollars in Russian-made submarines, destroyers and other weapons. Therefore, lifting the embargo could accelerate Beijing's buying spree and enable even greater Chinese aggression.
Maintaining the embargo provides strong leverage in encouraging progress toward a resolution of the status of Tibet and toward sustaining stability elsewhere. The key to Tibet's self-determination lies in China's transformation. In supporting Tibet, we need to consider the changes that are happening in China today--its increasing sophistication and influence on the world stage and the desire of the Chinese people for progress.
European governments, in concert with the U.S., are in a position to encourage China to begin substantive discussions with the Dalai Lama on Tibet. European leadership in this matter can perform a vital role in preserving Tibetan identity and culture. Today the citizens of Europe, who rightly honor their forebears for resisting injustice, can serve their legacy by helping the Dalai Lama resist a future Tibet determined solely by Beijing's interests. Let there be no mistake, the very survival of Tibetan culture and the Tibetan people themselves is at stake here.
Mr. Gere, an actor and activist, is the founder of Tibet House New York and chairman of the International Campaign for Tibet. |
http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=110006492 |
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Cthulhu
Joined: 02 Feb 2003
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| Posted: Fri Apr 01, 2005 2:40 pm Post subject: |
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| Tibet was abandoned long ago by everyone--one look at China's markets will tell you why. With Chinese resettlement in Tibet ongoing the entire country will have its culture more or less snuffed before the end of this century. |
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mithridates
Joined: 03 Mar 2003
Location: President's office, Korean Space Agency
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| Posted: Fri Apr 01, 2005 3:34 pm Post subject: |
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http://bo.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page
Tibet needs to work on its Wikipedia which currently only has 21 articles. Overseas Tibetans should be more active in increasing the content, and should have 10000 articles as a good preliminary goal. |
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VanIslander
Joined: 18 Aug 2003
Location: Geoje, Hadong, Tongyeong,... now in a small coastal island town outside Gyeongsangnamdo!
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| Posted: Fri Apr 01, 2005 4:38 pm Post subject: |
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| mithridates wrote: |
| Tibet needs to work on its Wikipedia which currently only has 21 articles. |
Broadband in Lhasa? I don't think so.
And overseas Tibetians probably don't communicate in Tibetian on the Internet too much.
The cause is there in Tibet and nearby exhile-filled towns in India.
Fossilizing the language for future anthropologists isn't a priority.
But I appreciate your sentiment: Tibetians should communicate more with each other - not via an online encyclopedia - but in at least email groups to build coalitions and organize events and efforts.
Though such actions aren't derived from the virtues of the Tibetian character.
I applaud the efforts of Gere. He's doing a part. |
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mithridates
Joined: 03 Mar 2003
Location: President's office, Korean Space Agency
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| Posted: Fri Apr 01, 2005 10:45 pm Post subject: |
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What about India? It really isn't all that hard to upload articles in Wikipedia, and that's where the gov't in exile is based. There are also quite a few Tibetan societies in Toronto.
Even Klingon has more articles than Tibetan.  |
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bucheon bum
Joined: 16 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Fri Apr 01, 2005 11:38 pm Post subject: |
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i weep and weep for tibet...
unfortunately that's a lie... |
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Kuros
Joined: 27 Apr 2004
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| Posted: Sat Apr 02, 2005 12:48 am Post subject: |
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| Bucheon Bum wrote: |
i weep and weep for tibet...
unfortunately that's a lie... |
ROFL. I do find it somewhat amusing that even the Dalai Lama has given up on Tibet's liberation. That being said, I think it shows real wisdom on his part.
Needless to say, I don't think China's conquest of Tibet is a really good reason for keeping up the arms embargo. Making sure Taiwan remains free is. |
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igotthisguitar
Joined: 08 Apr 2003
Location: South Korea (Permanent Vacation)
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Ya-ta Boy
Joined: 16 Jan 2003
Location: Established in 1994
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| Posted: Sat Apr 02, 2005 3:48 am Post subject: |
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| Tibet was abandoned long ago by everyone--one look at China's markets will tell you why. |
I think you are mixing up eras. Tibet was abandoned 50 years ago when China invaded it. The Chinese market was pretty minor then. It's closer to the truth to say that Tibet had no market then.
Tibet, Inner Mongolia and Manchuria are all lost causes. I always think of those countries when China-defenders say it has never been expansionist. No one is willing to fight a major war against China to free them. (Or against the US to free the Navaho or the Russians to free Chechnya...and on and on.) |
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igotthisguitar
Joined: 08 Apr 2003
Location: South Korea (Permanent Vacation)
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| Posted: Sat Apr 02, 2005 4:16 am Post subject: |
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| Ya-ta Boy wrote: |
| Quote: |
| Tibet was abandoned long ago by everyone--one look at China's markets will tell you why. |
I think you are mixing up eras. Tibet was abandoned 50 years ago when China invaded it. The Chinese market was pretty minor then. It's closer to the truth to say that Tibet had no market then. |
Doesn't anyone else out there find the whole Tibet / Korea connexion more than just a little coincidental ???
As i illustrate for many of my adult students, Beijing's actions on the two fronts: Tibet ( the "Western Treasure House" ) & Korea to the south east, "defending the motherland" was a clearly calculated two-front strategy.
November 26th, 1950 - Mao sends PLA troops supporting North Korea, in its efforts to capture the South
Tibet annexed by Bejing - 1950 ( anyone have an exact date ??? I'm still looking. Maybe the line has become blurred as a result of China's gradual buildup along the historic border; the start of a bloody campaign which eventually saw hordes of Mao's genocidal soldiers spilling across into eastern Tibet killing over 1 million ethnic residents ).
Ahh yes ... here we go ...
Using minor border skimishes as a pretext, 80,000 PLA troops invaded Tibet in the summer of 1950, while the world��s attention was focused on Korea.
For whatever reason, the UN clearly concluded Korea was far more of a priority than a Buddhist Kingdom spread out across the rooftop of the world.
http://www.freetibet.org/index.html |
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Summer Wine
Joined: 20 Mar 2005
Location: Next to a River
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| Posted: Sat Apr 02, 2005 8:56 am Post subject: |
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There was a book I read a few years ago (sorry cant remember the title) CIA operatives who had suppported the resistance and then were told to pull out became a little bit difficult about doing so. They were designated as crazy and forcibly removed. The subsequent deaths of thier resistance fighters was considered regretable.
Once again, humanity proves that it is only concerned with what impacts itself when it writes a country off as unsaveable and ignores what is right.
To all who feel no sorrow for the fallen, @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ |
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Cthulhu
Joined: 02 Feb 2003
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| Posted: Sat Apr 02, 2005 9:47 am Post subject: |
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ya-ta boy wrote:
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I think you are mixing up eras. Tibet was abandoned 50 years ago when China invaded it. The Chinese market was pretty minor then. It's closer to the truth to say that Tibet had no market then.
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You're right about that--it was a poor choice of wording on my part. The West had more important issues to worry about when Tibet was invaded. I was thinking more of the past 25 years or so, as the West became increasingly interested in supporting--however low key the support might be--independence movements in Eastern Europe (e.g, Poland) and then the Baltic States and Soviet Union. Not that it was politically difficult to do so.
China had so much internal chaos going on that there wasn't much point for the West to approach it back then, but as the Big Red Machine started grinding to life in the 80's the West discovered it couldn't get enough of China's potential and would let other things slide in order to appease it. |
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Hank Scorpio
Joined: 18 Jan 2003
Location: Ann Arbor, MI
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| Posted: Sat Apr 02, 2005 10:00 am Post subject: |
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| igotthisguitar wrote: |
For whatever reason, the UN clearly concluded Korea was far more of a priority than a Buddhist Kingdom spread out across the rooftop of the world. |
One of the reasons is that, as always, the UN's army is the US army. Beyond that, they really have no substantive forces. We had the means to go into Korea because we had control of Japan. Not so with Tibet, because the only real point of entry and country that could be used as a staging area was India, which has throughout it's history taken the fairly cowardly and unprincipled stance of being "unaligned", so defending Tibet was a nonstarter, because without India on board it just wouldn't be possible. |
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bucheon bum
Joined: 16 Jan 2003
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| Posted: Sat Apr 02, 2005 10:03 am Post subject: |
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| Summer Wine wrote: |
There was a book I read a few years ago (sorry cant remember the title) CIA operatives who had suppported the resistance and then were told to pull out became a little bit difficult about doing so. They were designated as crazy and forcibly removed. The subsequent deaths of thier resistance fighters was considered regretable.
Once again, humanity proves that it is only concerned with what impacts itself when it writes a country off as unsaveable and ignores what is right.
To all who feel no sorrow for the fallen, @@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@ |
There was a book I read about CIA officers killed in action. The first to die was involved in the actions you decribe above. He crossed to gobi, then the himalyas to escape the communist takeover and to assist the tibetans, only to be shot by friendly fire soon after reaching tibet. Pretty sad story. |
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VanIslander
Joined: 18 Aug 2003
Location: Geoje, Hadong, Tongyeong,... now in a small coastal island town outside Gyeongsangnamdo!
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| Posted: Sat Apr 02, 2005 3:30 pm Post subject: |
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| bucheon bum wrote: |
| ...He crossed to gobi, then the himalyas to escape the communist takeover and to assist the tibetans, only to be shot by friendly fire soon after reaching tibet. |
Geographically, this is absurd! |
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