[mobglob-discuss] Re: Demonstration against "Chinese Propaganda Week":

[Macdonald Stainsby]

No one denies that China has committed grave abuses, or that we want to preserve
culture in Tibet.

Nonetheless, one must look more closely to who the allies for a "Free Tibet"
are, why the American government champions them (when has the American
government done anything to support freedom for cultures and nations? They
support the Dalai Lama...) and what the consequences for the Tibetan culture and
Nation the destruction of the Chinese state (and the establishment of a Tibetan
state) would be.

Did people know that the theocratic rule of the Dalai Lama was just as
misogynist and totalitarian as the former Taliban and the current Iranian
government?

That 12 different classes of human being were part of law?

That the Dalai Lama himself owned millions and lived without actually working,
while others were his servants?

That the very same form of slavery as caused the American Civil War-- the
ownership of human beings-- was in pracitice under the rule of the Potala
Palace?

The religion of Buddhism is one I personally have ganined much of in the way of
my own philosophy about the world, the nature of exisitence, etc. It is a
spiritual guide to talk about how this world is illusory and all wealth and
power should be eschewed. The Dalai Lama, with all of his high meetings with the
American Administration, from the Kennedy presidency right through to today
always in friendliness, he is a contradiction to true Buddhist thinking (which
is what happens when any religion decides to move into the political realm) and
is nothing but a pawn of the Empire, the very same empire that is about to
incinerate and murder Iraqis, did so in Yugoslavia and Afghanistan.

Tibet is equivalent to the United States propaganda machine as the Sudeten
Germans were to the Goebbels machinery.

This is old and not the best in style, but I still like it enough to repost it.

---
TODAY'S TIBET
By Macdonald Stainsby

 The most screenplayed and least explained of the national liberation movements
currently spoken of in the mainstream press is undoubtedly that of Tibet. We are
treated to emotion evoking images of terror and sorrow in such Hollywood
offerings as "Seven Years in Tibet" and "Kundun". Short of content and
discussion, these movies provide any decent person with ample righteousness in
condemning "atrocities" carried out by a heartless, power hungry and
expansionist Chinese Communist Party.

 There are countless groups from all sorts of first world (i.e.- Imperialist)
countries pressing for a "Free Tibet!" using the charming and seemingly humble
Dalai Lama as their spokesman of reference. The Dalai himself has been awarded
the Nobel peace prize, adding fuel to a cause that, it would seem, only racists
and Chinese bureaucrats and Nationalists would dare oppose. Yet there are
several things that do not add up, and many secrets not spoken about all this
that cry for clarification. It does not seem that such information is
forthcoming from those who wished to be viewed as the bearers of expertise on
this "untouchable" issue. So let's "touch" the issues.


 Some questions either omitted or refuted through gross distortion are begged,
such as: 1. What was Tibet like during the period before People's Liberation
Army intervention? 2. Who is the Dalai Lama now and historically? What is the
Chinese argument to maintain jurisdiction? 3. Has Tibet ever been sovereign? Why
do Bill Clinton and other decidedly anti-liberation leaders and governments wish
to embrace "Tibetan Freedom"? 4. Aside from the one-sided stories of murder and
mayhem, what new policies have been implemented in Tibet since the occupation?
5. For a poor, third world region what does "freedom" amount to in practical
terms, outside of the (newly raised) slogans of "American style democracy"?

     These questions, usually afforded dismissal when not merely accorded
omission by the mainstream press, require real, objective answers for all those
seeking the best interests of Tibet and her inhabitants.

     Unlike the "Shangri-La" image of Tibet before 1959 usually portrayed by
movies and Richard Gere types, Tibet was a lot more complicated and unpleasant
than what is spoken today. The reality seems almost a matter of common sense.
What region, dirt poor and neglected has ever been the site of merely "religious
and spiritual harmony"? The Tibet of old was, in fact, a theocracy. Religious
rites were laws, and public input was never sought. In the charter of law, women
had no rights, being only those who produced further Tibetans. Tibet may have
been very much a land of spiritual wealth, but as is often the case, this was
dependent entirely on your material wealth. A country with only land that was
barely productive for cultivation of sparse crops and little else, the wealth
was almost non-existent. In order to achieve some form of economy without
damaging economic, religious and political privilege, Tibet had only around 100
families who owned nearly all the land in what was a de-facto serf-feudal
economy. As was done in establishing relations with the "Post-Communist" Russian
Federation, any so-called independent Tibet would be required to return "stolen"
(i.e. Nationalised) property to it's pre-'59 owners. Some estimates have gone as
high as 20 percent of the population being outright slaves, bought and sold.
These numbers are inconsistent with two facts: There were not enough people in
Tibet with resources to provide subsistence to slaves for such a large figure,
and the feudal slavery that was the lot of ninety percent of Tibet was far more
cost effective for the nobility than the cloak of religion. Five percent is the
number that most objective, non-partisan researchers agree on.

     Monks had to be male, and inherit the social status of the previous
generation in what was an inaccessible inner-ring of power. Slaves and serfs who
ventured to break free of their social position were subjected to torture, such
as live-skinning and tortuous burns to keep them in place and serve as an
unspoken warning to others who might dare the same revolt. The image fostered of
Tibetans studying prayers and meditations is far more misleading than it is
outright false. As already mentioned, Tibet was spiritual for those with the
material to back it up. However, this picture is propagandistic because Tibetans
has an overall literacy rate estimated at less than 5 percent. "Estimates" need
to be gathered because the leadership of Tibet would never attempt such a humane
census. Only two schools, both run by the monasteries, existed before 1959. Both
of these educated the next crop of privileged monks. Lacking the access to
education and inundated with a reactionary brand of Buddhism, Tibetans who were
very poor even developed a legend that if you kill a rich foreigner, you will
inherit his "luck". Infant mortality was higher than anywhere else in Mainland
China.

     As with most, if not all feudalisms, any wealth deemed important to the
hierarchy of Tibet was just taken. In other words, when the livestock (almost
only yaks and sheep) was limited for meat, a serf would watch helplessly as the
monks carted them off for their own consumption. As necessary, this was done by
murderous force.

     As far as the Dalai Lama, do not be deceived by his "respectable"
credentials. Nobel Peace Prize winners have included such men as covert
operation king Henry Kissinger, supposedly for bringing peace in Vietnam, which
only he and his cohorts had prevented through bombing campaigns for the previous
20 years.  This "prize" was the West's answer to the Stalin Peace Prize, awarded
to Paul Robeson, among others. In fact, the Dalai Lama has been on the CIA
payroll and contact list since before the 1959 intervention. The Dalai's role
was less than peaceful, much less than moral. In 1951, the Tibetan authorities
signed an agreement with the Communist Party of China that was in the mould of
all the other Sino-Tibetan charters; Tibet was an autonomous region of China
with her own local authorities, answerable to the central government in Beijing.
This did not signify a new motherland for Tibet- rather it showed a new
administration for the old motherland. The new government, being a socialist
governing body, laid out a plan for the slow transformation of Tibet's property
relations, to be completed by 1964. This was too much for a privileged elite
dependant on those relations, so when the CIA approached the Dalai and his
patrons in the late `50's, he was very accommodating. In 1959 there were
undoubtedly many Tibetans who wanted an end to their centuries old domination. A
state was now demanded by the theocracy, and even the poorest peasants who
wanted to live without China joined up---at first. When the PLA arrived to put
down the revolt of the aristocrats, the slogan of the national revolution of a
decade previous, "land to the tiller" was raised. This left the Dalai Lama with
mostly only Monks and slave owners (As well as quite a bit of American sponsored
weaponry) to fight with, the peasants either opting out of the fight or joining
the Communists. With this, the foreign sponsored "uprising" was quickly crushed,
and the land reform sped up by five years, freeing many de-facto slaves in the
process. The Dalai Lamas' escape was so well orchestrated against tremendous
odds; it has been said to become a legend inside the CIA. The Dalai Lama, in a
total about face from his previous attempts to work with the new government,
started talking about "Tibetan Independence" and the like. At this point, the
Dalai Lama and company got heavily involved in the CIA, receiving hundreds of
millions of dollars of aid and weaponry throughout the sixties and seventies to
start a terrorist-style "contra war", much of the type which terrorised the
young Nicaraguan revolution into submission throughout the Eighties.



In an article just released on Oct 7 in the NY Times, the Dalai Lama stated in
his own defense that the money all went to "the cause", and not him. Okay, so
he's an agent of the CIA, but not a corrupt one. This is hardly relevant. The
real "crime" that the PLA committed was to eliminate religious theocratic rule
and economic power, something our friend the Dalai Lama has not forgiven them
for to this day.

     The Chinese maintain that Tibet has not been independent for 700+ years,
which is almost accurate. In fact, Tibet has not been independent for 1300
years, since before being ruled by the Mongols. The first Chinese revolution of
the twentieth century, taking place in 1911, left much of China in disarray.
According to the Dalai Lama's exiles, Tibet was "free" from 1912 to 1951.
Possibly he has a de-facto argument, but then so would any province in China not
directly under Chiang Kai-shek's thumb during this period. No country ever
extended diplomatic recognition to Tibet. Prior to the defeat of Britain in
attempting to maintain India as a colony, Britain tried to push Tibet
(briefly) as a "lost" part of India. An unsuccessful attempt at drawing up
British passports for Tibetans was completely abandoned when it became futile to
try and hold on to India. With the destruction of the greater portion of the
British empire, so the death of "greater India" in Tibet. No other attempts of
splitting or recognising Tibet as separate from China would occur until the rise
to prominence of the Dalai Lama as part of the Cold War. All this encompasses
Tibet's 1300 years of legal (or at least recognised) incorporation into the
Mongol or Chinese empires, far longer than Northern Ireland in Britain, Quebec
or First Nations in Canada or Texas, Hawaii, California not to forget Puerto
Rico in the United States.

     All of this is not to discount that Tibet has very clearly constituted a
separate nation. There are many dozen distinct nations in China alone. From
Hawaii and Mexico to India, to Peru all of these indigenous nations are just the
tip of the iceberg
Internationally. Many, many groups that most North Americans have never heard of
constitute legitimate nations. Most have never been independent states. On this
note, Texas has been (briefly) an independent, sovereign state. There is also a
"Republic Of Texas" movement that has been involved in exchanges of gunfire with
cops. No one is duty bound to support a sovereigntist movement by mere virtue of
its existence.  Quite often, the bedfellows that one could end up with are
clearly worse than the current state of affairs.

With all the media hype around this issue of "Free Tibet", it is clear that the
rulers of the western world support the return of the Dalai Lama to his former
throne. In contrast to their callous silence on the Kurdistani, Native American
and East Timorese genocides, to name but only three of a current age, why are
they so concerned about Tibet? The current Chinese government is an enigma to
western policy makers. On the one hand it claims to be "communist", on the other
it allows massive inflights of foreign capital to over-exploit her workforce.
China maintains nuclear capabilities, yet she has sold off guaranteed jobs,
education and "the Iron Rice Bowl". In the final analysis however, what people
define China as is just a label. Western speculators have been wasting no time
in recognising the "good and bad"
aspects of modern China, to their view. At the final analysis to
Washington,  The Chinese can not be forgiven for their independence. While
massively preferred by the West than the old Mao years, China still sets her own
interest rates, foreign policy and laws- all while running a state that has a
large portion still nationalised. This is the real "crime" that China commits
today, as Noriega's Panama, Saddam Hussein's Iraq and Qaddafi's Libya have made
quite clear. The Pentagon will support the Dalai Lama as long as possible.

The economic reasons are not as clear in Tibet as they are in Iraq. Tibet has
few resources worth much, and not enough to be noticeable to any Imperialist
economy, or even the Chinese, who as mentioned spend more money on than they
receive from Tibet. Ripping out a chunk of China would weaken her internally and
militarily, however. The "Roof of the World" is very difficult to access
clandestinely from either India or Nepal. But a China without the Tibet region
is very accessible with tanks, aircraft, etc.., and the Dalai Lama is not likely
to be very resistant to using Tibet for American Foreign policy, as he has been
doing precisely that since 1959. China, since 1949, has been under not one
country's dictates and the "Government in Exile" is already as such, dependant
on Western Europe and the United States.

     Since the 1959 riots, hundreds of schools have been built to supplement the
previously existing 2. For the fist time in Tibetan history now, literacy is
more common than uncommon. The life expectancy was 35, now it is 69 years of
age. Poor peasants, serf slaves and outright slaves have all been distributed
land for each and all (In 1960 some tens of thousands of newly emancipated
slaves were invited to a bonfire where all the old property deeds were burned.
The Communists hosted the event, but they were not the prime participants).
Women's rights at least entered the 20th century, which is bad enough. The most
important feature of the 59 "chasing out" is the achievement for Tibetans of
what most constitutions cherish, the legal separation of church and state. No
one in North America would get very far calling for a fundamentalist Catholic
state, although there are many like Pat
Robertson and John Hagee who try hard to establish one.

     The Chinese experiment called "The Great Proletarian
Cultural Revolution" of the sixties and seventies is very divisive, even on the
left alone. Some refer to it as "power politics and Cult of the Personality gone
mad" and others call it the "Greatest advance of democracy in history".
Regardless of your personal take on all that, what happened in Tibet at the time
was the worst of Chinese occupation, to be sure. Outside Chinese smashed
cultural relics, destroyed Temples and denounced much of what was historically
linked with Tibet. Today, it is a different story. Billions of Yuan have been
poured into restoring and rebuilding the temples of Tibet. Religious schools for
monks have been opened up, but slaves and privilege have not been restored.

     The Dalai Lama and all movements associated with him and his "facts" can
not be seen as a reliable source on Tibet today, for he has not been to Tibet in
nearly Forty years. His motives behind his "facts" are clear by virtue of their
inconsistency. In the early Sixties, he claimed that Tibet had a population of 2
million. Then, overnight, he was claiming twelve million. Then it was 3, then
6....

     The number of residents is not the only number that has fluctuated
according to whatever is selling at the time. To start cries of "genocide" the
Dalai Lama stated "3 million deaths in Tibet". When it finally became apparent
that Tibet had less than 1.5 million people in '59, the cry became "1.3 million
deaths". We then need to ask if each Tibetan woman of childbearing age give
birth to over 20 kids, for that is the only way to account for this death toll,
when today's ethnic Tibetan population is 2.2 million.

     An argument often used with me is that the Dalai Lama is not the "Free
Tibet" movement. When this becomes true, the "facts" the movement promotes will
not be exactly those of the "Government In
Exile".  At this point, a more honest but not fanatical and propagandistic look
into abuses of Tibetans can occur. But for now, heart tugging, apolitical
movies, some written by SS members, will be more important than the truth of
Tibetan history. This will probably be true into the foreseeable future, what
with China being a "bogeyman" of the new administration.

     The Tibet of today is open up for tourism. In fact the Chinese government
is encouraging such, putting out several periodicals explaining their (equally
biased) version of events, both historically and today. In Tibet, you will see
monks, lots of Chinese government personnel, and uncomfortable residents, to be
sure. You will not see people carted off for speaking to you, and ethnic
Tibetans are the overwhelming majority. This reality will negate the claims that
Tibet is being assimilated to change the make up of society. It would be right
in front of your eyes. As important as what you see, will be what you don't. No
slaves being whipped in public, nor are women being sold on a market. No one
being forced to sell land to "Him".

     Tibet is a very economically backward region, with all the trappings of the
third world very close to reality every day. That reality gets closer every time
the Dalai Lama gets more press in his attempts to return to the throne. Chinas'
"reform and opening up drive" are reaching the rural areas last. Thus, Tibet may
have a precarious future under the current CPC, but not so its' present. As
already mentioned, Tibet is actually a loss-leader economically as more money is
coming from the central government into Tibet than from Tibet outwards. Schools,
electricity plants and the like come from the CPC-public treasury. Never in
history have any imperialist countries ever executed such a relationship. If the
Dalai Lama has his way, Tibet would be merely tourist based, and killing rich
foreigners for luck would probably become legend again. What little resources
Tibet has would be sold to the highest bidder and mercilessly exploited. Former
Serf families would lose their land to the magic of the "market". To culturally
preserve Tibet, the only answers are:

1) Pressure China (not through other governments nor through existing "Free
Tibet" groups) to allow more autonomy for the Tibetan region, while
simultaneously convincing the Dalai Lama to accept the CPC offer as spiritual
but not political head of Tibet.  However it must be noted that we must first
determine if Tibetans do, in fact, want this. There is currently no realistic
way of finding out; we only hear "yes" or "No".

2) Try to get Tibet to bypass the "reforms" as much as possible, to continue the
development of the Tibetan Autonomous Region on a healthy scale under socialist
economic principles.

3) Make it obvious what the "Government in Exile" is really being motivated by,
and who sponsors them to separate while helping the Tibetans themselves continue
the reconstruction of their cultural practice.

These may not be as emotionally comforting as picking a "righteous side", but it
has a real chance of helping Tibetans and their culture far more than spreading
the lies of an American backed, deposed theocratic Monarch.

Macdonald Stainsby, 1998,99,01




----- Original Message -----
From: "rick" <rickm at sprint.ca>
To: "Project-X at Resist. Ca" <project-x at resist.ca>
Sent: Friday, September 20, 2002 3:47 PM
Subject: [pr-x] FW: Demonstration against "Chinese Propaganda Week":


> "While China Lies, Tibet Lies" demonstration-----Original Message-----
> From: Kevan Hudson [mailto:khudson at vcn.bc.ca]
> Sent: Friday, September 20, 2002 10:56 AM
> Subject: "While China Lies, Tibet Lies" demonstration
>
>
> Demonstration against "Chinese Propaganda Week":
>
> When: 6:30 Wednesday, September 25th (make this one the priority), Thursday,
> September 26th
> Where: Meet at Homer and Robson courtyard of the Vancouver Public Library
>
> Dear Member,
>
> Other than Tibetan Uprising Day, March 10th we rarely ask you to take direct
> action and come out to voice your opinion loud and clear that Tibet must be
> free. However, we feel compelled to ask for your presence next week in a
> demonstration against the blatant Chinese Government propaganda occurring
> right here in Vancouver.
>
> The People's Republic of China's (PRC) Government is sponsoring "China
> Tibetan Culture Week", a show at the Vancouver Centre for Performing Arts.
> The show does not represent genuine Tibetan culture or history and is in
> fact a desperate Chinese propaganda show to convince the West that Tibet is
> part of China and that all is well there. The PRC has millions of dollars to
> spend on this propaganda. We only have ourselves and you, to battle it.
>
> Canadian Tibetans across Canada are denouncing "China's Tibet Cultural
> Week", calling it a cruel propaganda exercise orchestrated by the Government
> of China and designed to whitewash the cultural abuse that has devastated
> Tibet since 1959. The show has been touring across Canada and is sponsored
> by several naïve Chinese business people and special interest groups,
> however, not a single Tibetan organization in Canada was approached and none
> are involved in any way.
>
> CTC National President Thubten Samdup, who is also a former Director of the
> Tibetan Institute of Performing Arts says "This event is more about
> promoting China's occupation of Tibet than anything else. Today's reality is
> that Tibetan culture is under attack in China's Tibet".
>
> Of Tibet and His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Mr. Li Gang, Vice-President of the
> primary organizer of this event, China's Association for Cultural Exchange
> with Foreign Countries, said during a reception for the same show touring
> Australia last year, "Situated on the Roof of the World, Tibet is a part of
> China"...The separatist clique of the Dalai Lama (yes, that's supposed to be
> us) are clearly making use of the lack of understanding people have of Tibet
> to portray it as a nation that is backward, ignorant, despotic, and poverty
> stricken... In terms of his political role, the Dalai Lama is a charlatan,
> his words and actions reveal him as a skilled manipulator of truth,
> adulteration, and blatant lies."
>
> Contrast this with the fact that the Dalai Lama never speaks ill of the
> actual figures in the PRC government who are oppressing, imprisoning and
> torturing his own people. His Holiness the Dalai Lama is a winner of the
> Nobel Peace Prize. We believe he is respected the world over and we believe
> Tibet should be free. This is what we will be "fighting" for next week.
>
> Demonstration against "Chinese Propaganda Week":
>
> 6:30 Wednesday, September 25th (So we start with a bang, priority should be
> on making this day if you cannot make the 26th)
>
> 6:30 Thursday, September 26th
>
> For both days meet at the Homer and Robson courtyard of the Vancouver Public
> Library, directly across the street from the Centre for Performing Arts on
> 777 Homer Street.
>
> Please help us expose this "genuine Tibetan event" as a charade!
>
> Thank you for your time.
>
> CTC - Vancouver
>
>
>
> ---
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