Free Tibet!

Cartoon by Jeff Stahler at Cagle.com

“Due to security reasons the name of the author is omitted”

This line appeared in the Dutch Volkskrant under a report on the recent protests in and around Tibet. In all my years of reading the news, I have yet to see simply the words “From a correspondent” underneath the headline with no mention of the correspondent’s name. But in the climate of the ongoing crackdown by soldiers and security forces, together with reports of censorship and of deportations of international journalists by the Chinese government, this is the reality.

Another reality is that eight years ago, a regime that could never have been too proud of its human rights record and democratic credentials was to the surprise of many awarded with the honour of hosting the 2008 Olympics. How Beijing has rejoiced since, and how Beijing is doing all it can to ensure that this will be the Olympics to overshadow all others in history, as a homage to China’s “peaceful rise” to becoming a world power. Continuously the International Olympic Committee shrugged off critics of Beijing Games by reiterating that sports has nothing to do with politics. In the words of IOC President Jacque Rogge, the “IOC is a catalyst for change in China but it is not a panacea, […] It is a sporting, non-political organization and we cannot solve the problems of the world."

The tanks and machine guns are rolling into Tibet. Over 100 protesters, or perhaps even more, are dead, some due to the Chinese government, which itself has admitted to firing upon civilians. The IOC can at least try harder than merely congratulate China on improving its air quality ahead of the Games. Indeed, as the coordinating body of world’s foremost sporting event, it has great influence and leverage over the host states. While martial law falls on Tibet, there is not a mention of the unrests and crackdown by the Chinese authorities on the website of the IOC. Whatever happened to the promises China made upon winning the Olympic bid to make significant improvements in its human rights situation?

Wei Jingsheng, a Chinese winner of several human rights and democracy awards who spent over 15 years in prison for his pro-democracy activities, wrote in the International Herald Tribune:

The IOC's unwillingness to pressure Beijing at this moment is tragic because these Olympics are a turning point in modern Chinese history.

By acting as host to the Olympics, the Communist Party's rulers have turned their palace into a global glass house. They can no longer show the smiling face of the "peaceful rise" of China to the world and the stern face of brutal suppression at home.

The Olympics will force China to show its true face. Only international pressure, by the IOC and others, will make sure it is the face we all want to see.

Due to China’s continual inaction over the continuing bloodshed in Darfur, Oscar-winning director Steven Spielberg (rightfully) resigned back in February, after mounting pressures calling for his disengagement from what has been deemed the “Genocide Olympics”. With the deteriorating situation in Tibet, the Dalai Lama has repeatedly warned of a China’s active engagement in a “cultural genocide”, that has in the past half a century threatened to wipe out all remnants of Tibetan language, religion and culture. What pride the Olympics dream is, to be hosted by a country now coupled closely with two of the most severe atrocities in modern history! So much for the ideals of “peace and progress, harmonious development, living in amity, cooperation and mutual benefit” that the official organisers of the Games trump on their website.

Of course, as with everything and anything related with 3 Taboos (Tiananmen, Tibet or Taiwan), the Chinese government’s propaganda machine has ensured any sensitive news is moulded to reflect the great visions and twisted lies of the Chinese Communist Party. Thus, ordinary people and anti-government dissidents are not being rounded up or placed under constant house arrest in order to preserve Beijing’s image of a peaceful and clean city… the unrests in Tibet were caused by unruly Tibetans under the instigation and control of the Dalai Lama, and only 13 people have died, all caused by mob anger… and there are no free and fair presidential elections in Taiwan this Saturday.

Cartoon by Jeff Koterba, at Cagle.com

A commentary in the Chinese government’s mouthpiece, Xinhua, ran the following tirade against the internationally acclaimed His Holiness the Dalai Lama:

“…the monk in a crimson cassock has many tools for disguise to survive the international criticism against violence and terror: his preaching of peace, tolerance and benevolence to the Nobel honor and U.S. medal which added to his undeserved aura.

Make no mistake people, we have all been fooled by this conniving two-faced monk, who is the equivalent of the Catholic Pope in Tibetan Buddhism! The Chinese government went as far as to insinuate that the Dalai Lama’s eye for terrorism comes from having been educated by an old-Nazi. The slur against the latest winner of the US Congressional Gold Medal continues:

“this impudent politician did not show any sign of shame when he disassociated himself from the conspiracy as an innocent monk, leaving his followers standing as cat's paws by persuading them, in a canting manner, "not to resort to violence" reportedly in a statement after the serene abode of the gods was disturbed.

What flowerly language. Similar sentiments are echoed by an irrate and finger-pointing Chinese premier Wen Jiabao, who at a press conference blurted out:

There is ample evidence that this incident was premeditated, masterminded, incited and organized by the Dalai clique. This once again shows that the claims made by the Dalai clique over the years that they seek peaceful dialogue and not independence are nothing but lies. Their hypocritical lies cannot cover the indisputable facts.

Indisputable acts of what? That the Dalai Lama, who has lived in self-imposed exile for half a century, is in fact a terrorist mastermind on par with Osama Bin Laden? That this inspiring spiritual leader with millions of followers, whose consistently promotion of “peace, understanding and harmony” is the reason he won the Noble Peace Prize, should be unmasked as a fake?

I would personally trust the Dalai Lama over any government that is constantly ranked at the bottom along with other human rights violators and oppressors of freedom of press. I would rather trust what I freely hear and freely read in the news about Tibet than believe the views of a government which will not blink to throw you in prison for merely carrying a photograph of the Dalai Lama.

A commentary today in the Chinese government’s mouthpiece, the People’s Daily, praised the crackdown in Tibet as being “restrained”. And China’s restrained reaction to the Tibetan uprising apparently enjoys “broad international support”... from the likes of Syria, the Democratic People’s Republic of (North) Korea, and the very important Fiji, as well as Serbia (still sour of its loss of Kosovo).

In yet another commentary, the Chinese government has vowed to “resolutely [crack] down on and severely [punish] a handful of lawless criminals”, and clarifies in what is widely seen as the strongest language by China on its handling of the Tibetan uprising that:

we must see through the secessionist forces' evil intentions, uphold the banners of maintaining social stability, safeguard the socialist legal system and protect people's fundamental interests, and resolutely crush the "Tibet independence" forces' conspiracy and sabotaging activities so as to foster a favorable social environment for reform and development and for people's happiness and welfare. [...]

After decades of construction and development, Tibet is enjoying its best-ever time of progress and stability, the paper says. Accelerating development, improving livelihood, maintaining stability and opposing separation are the road the region has to walk on if it is to prosper. Secession is against the people's will and sabotage is doomed to fail […]

To be clear, Tibet has never been an integral part of China. If it were, why did China need to invade in 1950 and forcibly oppress uprisings that have to date caused over 1 million deaths? Under international law, Tibet can even be said to have enjoined sovereign independence before the Chinese invasion. Admittedly, Tibet’s relations with China has historically been that of a vassal under the suzerainty of the Chinese Emperors. However, Tibet has always enjoyed much freedom to govern its internal affairs according to its own distinct culture and religion under the reign of the Dalai Lamas. This peaceful coexistence ended with the so-called “liberation” of Tibet. Atrocities and a reign of terror ensued that has repeatedly been classified as a genocide outright. The so-called “Seventeen Point Agreement for the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet”, under which Tibet recognises its “return to the big family of the motherland - the People's Republic of China” was not more than a diktat signed by the then Tibetan government as Chinese troops were already brimming on the borders. Immediately after the Dalai Lama and Tibetan government fled into exile, the Agreement was repudiated, and since then the Dalai Lama has called for “a meaningful autonomy” for Tibet, whereby Tibetans have freedom in cultural, political, religious and economic affairs. He is willing to meet and negotiate with the Chinese leadership, and has repeated extended the olive branch. It is Beijing, with its warped vision of the Dalai Lama as a “splittist” and “terrorist”, that is refusing to acknowledge His Holiness’ goodwill.

The cause of the recent unrest, like those back in 1989 and even before, is the Chinese government’s strategy of turning Tibet into any other Chinese province. By actively attracting Chinese people to emigrate to Tibet, the economic and political powers are now unfairly biased against the Tibetans in favour of those with loyalties to Beijing. Monasteries are under surveillance, Tibetan language and culture is increasingly marginalised, while even the Panchen Lama, who will be he Dalai Lama and according to tradition can only be reincarnated, is handpicked by the Chinese Communist Party, and resides in Beijing. A then unknown Communist Party cadre by the name of Hu Jintao was the Party Chief of the “Tibet Autonomous Region”. It was he who ordered the violent suppression of similar uprisings in early 1989. Today, he has been “elected” (twice, no less!) to the position of President of the People’s Republic of China. So who is responsible for the brutal suppression of the uprisings in Tibet now? Hu.

What a message Nancy Pelosi sent to the international community, when yesterday she stood side by side with the Dalai Lama in a show of her solidarity with the Tibetan people. Dubbed the third most influential political figure in the US, the Congressional Speaker attacked China’s violent handling of the Tibetan uprisings. In an emotive speech, Pelosi could not have put it in better words:

“Today, this delegation from the United States Congress is here to shed the bright light of truth on what is happening in Tibet. In sanskrit the word non-violence means ‘truth insistence.’ Insistence on the truth is what this is all about. We insist that the world know the truth about what is happening in Tibet.

“If freedom loving people throughout the world do not speak out against China's oppression in China and in Tibet we have lost all moral authority to speak on human rights anywhere in the world. The cause of Tibet is a challenge to the conscience of the world.

Why is the rest of the world silent as China continues to oppress the Tibetans? Why is the UN silent when human rights are constantly being trampled on by one of its veto-wielding powers? Why is the IOC playing dumb when the country it foresaw would usher in “a landmark moment in Olympic history, and is obviously an event of huge national interest in China” is now revealing its true ugly nature? And they claim to be freedom loving?

The Olympic Games are a great opportunity for China to show off its huge strides in development and economic progress indeed. But it is also an opportunity for the world to pay attention to many of the abuses and failings that continue to plague this self-proclaiming super power.

A tyrant that puts on a lavish suit that many are envious of is still a tyrant. And a China that can put on a stunning Olympic Games is still the oppressive and brutal regime that it has always been. The Olympic dream has not improved the lot of ordinary people in China, nor has it lived up to the promises of greater media freedom and transparency as previously trumpeted. Instead, the outburst of violence in Tibet reveal all too well the continual suffering and fears of the oppressed Tibetan people, of the democracy activists and political dissidents, that China would rather the world forget under the limelight of the glitz and glamour it tries so hard to showcase.

But China has invited the world to its doors when it accepted the honour of hosting the Games. And besides the glory and gradeur that it boasts, it should not be afraid show the dark and shameful sides which will forever present an obstacle to achieving that superpower status it so aspires to reach.

And we, the citizens of this world, the very citizens who love freedom and abhor the suffering of those who have none, should not be afraid to look and to see.

Not just to look what is fundamentally hypocritical about the Olympic Games which are supposed to celebrate unity and humanity, but also to see the silence of our leaders who claim to love and support freedom, yet fall suddenly despicably silent when it comes to dealing with a China where there is none.

Links:

See The Guardian’s excellent coverage on Tibet and the recent uprising.

CNN reports on China’s media censorship, as does the BBC.

For commentaries offering a more “balanced” side of the uprising in Tibet, go to the

Chinese government’s mouthpiece, Xinhua New Agency. And here you see a whole site of the Chinese government dedicated to condemning the “separatist activities” of the Dalai Lama. Additional reporting by China’s official news channel (ironically abbreviated as) CCTV.

A good website keeping a monitor on China’s censorship of news and the Internet.

Official site of the Dalai Lama.
Website of the Free Tibet movement.

Dreaming of dad

A leopard, golden and spotted black, slick and slim, oozing with beauty and a deadly silence. Not just any leopard, but a Formosan Cloud Leopard, indigenous to the high mountain forests of Taiwan, nowadays extremely rare, and rarely seen.


It approached me, and I was stricken with fear. He silently stepped toward me, I wanted to run, but could not. Something somehow made me stay, even though I was trembling. The leopard squinted, lazily like a cat, and circled me. His breath felt warm. Out of nowhere came this urge, and my hand raised itself to touch the leopard's patterned fur. He felt soft, tender and gentle, and the leopard stopped in its path for me to pet, like a tame cat, were it not for the sharp fangs that glistened whenever the leopard opened its mouth.

I stroked the leopard me, and it started to purr, loudly. In the following scene, I was on the leopard's back, riding it, as he sprinted on and on and on through the dense forest floor. I felt such joy, elation and liberation as I grabbed onto the leopard's fur and moved with the leopard's movements, swiftly and silently.

We came to a stop, and the leopard set me down. As if the leopard was tired from the running, he rolled on its back and lay there with his head softly rubbing the earth. I knelt down next to him, and started to stroke him, stroke him, stroke him ever so softly, as he purred and purred with pleasure. His eyes closed as his paws hung loosely from the relaxed and lazy posture the leopard was in. Reassured, I patted him on the chest, and felt his heartbeat, while my other hand stroked the leopard's soft coat on his head. I felt such warmth, such connection with him, even though they say the Cloud Leopard is normally a shy but vicious creature of the jungle. I knelt beside him, but could only see and feel the tenderness and beauty of the leopard in every stroke of my hand.

Slowly, slowly, the leopard's purr grew softer. His heartbeat also slowed, and his paws gradually no longer moved as it did before from side to side expressing comfort. I stroked it even more, admiring the beauty and tranquility of this gift of nature before me, and felt grateful that I could be so close to it in such a peaceful moment. What a precious moment!

I woke up... my heart ached and wrenched as a deep, deep pain throbbed through my chest. I felt myself cry out, but there was no sound, but an emptiness and a silent echo that made the deep void inside me even more empty-feeling than the moment before...

It was pitch-dark. Then it began. The emptiness turned to tears, and I sobbed in bed. Images of dad flashed before my closed eyes, images of his kind face, echoes of his soft voice. Another image flooded into my memories... the image of those tender moments when I stroked his face and hands as he slowly, slowly, slowly went to sleep... the long long sleep he would no longer wake up from. More tears flowed, and I felt the pillow case dampen as I buried my face in it to dampen the sounds of my howls... My howls from the pain, loss, and realisation that my dad is finally gone, and that I will never see him again.

Rarely have I felt pain of such intensity, and never in the past month since my dad's passing away have I shed so many tears. I did not know where those tears came from. Perhaps from the stored tears that were kept dammed inside in those times when I felt I could not break for the sake of others around me. Wherever they came from, the tears uncontrollably flooded through my eyes. I tugged at the thick douvet and the blanket I was under, and remembering that dad had bought the blanket for me to keep me warm during the cold winter months, I cried even more... even, even more.

I cried myself asleep, and before long, I drifted back into the world of dreams where I was again reunited with my dad.

Home again

The plane tore through the dense clouds, into a world of gray and rain. The cabin shook, and the passengers shrilled slightly as the turbulent air made the plane drop suddenly. Moments later, we landed, welcomed to The Netherlands by pouring rain and a cold, cold gust of wind.

Welcome home, David. And the first welcome sign was a big fine by the revenue bureau. I simply cannot lie, and when the customs officer asked me whether I bought anything from abroad, I said a laptop. He looked at it, estimated the cost, and I was later to pay 19% value added tax (VAT). 150 Euros, merciless and no discussions. Enough to pay a month's worth of food. So much for buying the laptop I have always wanted in Taiwan, thinking I would save a lot on costs.

Luckily, brother was at the airport to pick me up, and his company made the trip home in the rain almost bearable. The roads were empty, soaking in rain, and the wind was strong. Coming from the bustle of Asia, you could easily mistaken a lazy Sunday morning in Europe as the land of the dull and the dead. Only when my cat greeted me with her miauw and tail at the door did it seem like there was any life or warmth.

A 16 hour flight, over 9000kilometers across the world, and I have arrived in another world. Perhaps it is the weather, perhaps it is the tiredness and grogginess from attempting to sleep sitting almost straight up because I was afraid to wake up the person behind me hadI lowered my seat, but this place is such a contrast from the home I left back in Taiwan. And yet, less than two months ago, this place seemed like the comfortable and quiet home I could return to for shelter and warmth. It will take some time before I get used to here again...

Last night, I said goodbye to my mum, turned the corner of the staircase as the image of her standing in the doorframe disappeared from sight. Moments before, we hugged deeply, twice. More moments earlier, I handed her a notebook, the cover of which, in small print, said: "Somethings if not done now will never be done". Flip open the first page, and I wrote the words: " Smiling is the best self-cure". When mum received news that she could be discharged from the hospital a few days ago, I had taken a picture of her which captured that intense and heart-felt joy of relief. I had enlarged that, and developed some other pictures of flowers, sunsets and of me, for my mum to keep her company as she faces the next few sessions of chemo therapy in the coming months.

To be honest, I got frustrated as the time ticked by to the moment of departure. Why did I have to leave? Why did I have to leave my mum behind? There seemed so little time to do all the things I wanted to do... like tidy my dad's room more, so that mum would not have to face it all alone... like clean up the house, so that mum would not have to strain herself wiping and washing... But the last few days of my stay in Taiwan seemed to go by so quickly, without me realising it. Tuesday last, my mum came out of the hospital. The next day, we stayed home to recuperate, and Thursday I quickly went out to meet a friend and to do a quick shop of the things I need... Friday I went to see my dad at the temple... and Saturday was the day of departure itself. Naively I would think to myself, as I often did as a child, how wonderful it would be to be able to stop and turn back time.

But time passes with every tick of the second hand. And the past six weeks have gone by so quickly. Thinking back, what have I really done? Mum thinks a lot, and as we hugged one another goodbye last night, she thanked me again and again for all that I have done... but somehow I think I did only what I could, and only what a son ought to do. Nothing much more, nothing less.

At the airport, just before I headed for the departure gate, I made a last-minute call to relatives and friends to bid them all farewell, and to wish them well for the coming time till we meet again. I spoke to a cousin of mine I have always been very close to, and naturally tears began to fell as I recounted that moment when dad passed away... I saw those moments I held dad's hands in my own, I remembered those words I whispered to dad in the hope that he would let go and move on peacefully. And I could not control myself but started to cry in the airport hall. It seemed like all the spotlight was on me, all at once all these people started to appear and pass me by out of nowhere. I turned against the wall, and wiped my tears. "I think I have no regrets. I hope I have not disappointed them. I hope..." I said silently to my cousin as I chocked on my own tears, "I hope that dad and mum will be proud of me..." My cousin reassured me that they are indeed proud of me, and that they have every reason to be.

The plane roared upwards, and the wheels made a thudding sound as they left the ground. My physical 'connection' with my home-land was severed in that very moment, as the plane flew higher, and higher skward. The plane turned around and started to head south, along the western coast of Taiwan, flying over the lit and bustling towns and cities below. I was unfortunately sitting on the side of the Taiwan Strait, which was pitch dark, save for the very occasional faint flicker of fishingboats below.

"Goodbye, my home! Goodbye, my loved ones! May you all forever remain as beautiful and peaceful as I remember you."

I have made this trip many times before. I have bid farewell to my parents many, many times before in my life. Each time, leaving them is such a painful and sad process, and I can easily remember each departure clearly. I can still remember the tears, taste the sourness I felt in my heart as I tried to grasp onto those moments when they were still standing before me just before they are separated by the glass wall of the departure hall.

But this time, as the plane soared on higher and further away, I was somehow at ease with myself... I was not crying, as I had expected, but my mind moved on from moment to moment, resting in that very moment, without lingering in the past or wandering around in the possibilities and dramatic scenarios of the could-bes.

Sixteen hours later, the plane touched down in the rain and the wind. And I was home again.