I can no longer be silent about this...
Tibet, the lovely country I had the privilege of visiting last summer, is in trouble.
That in itself is nothing new; life has not been the same for them ever since China took over about 50 years ago or more, "liberating" them from "imperialist forces" that were somehow occupying Tibet and keeping it from being part of the great motherland, to whom it has apparently always belonged.
In case you can't tell, the above is a bunch of malarky, seeing as there were about, if I remember correctly, all of 2 foreigners in Tibet at the time, since it was a self-contained, wholly Tibetan owned-and-operated tiny, peaceful country. China has ruled it with a heavy hand, and has spread blatant lies about it to the world, and also to its own people. Often the Chinese themselves do not know the truth of Tibet's situation and history, though it is easily enough obtained, if you know you are supposed to be looking for it.
Lately, however (as in, last week), there have been more and more protests in Tibet, mostly lead by monks, if I understand correctly, and at least 10-30 people have just recently been killed by the Chinese military.
Please go here for more information, and think often of the Tibetans during this time, and the time leading up to the Olympics this summer. Keep your eyes on Asia, and don't believe everything you hear, especially if it is coming from Chinese PR...
2 comments:
And so say all of us; for who does not know the fear of a stronger-than-thou when it comes up against your face? But why does China want Tibet? If it were not for Mt. Everest and the symbol of the greatest, the highest, the most feared, would they still want it? Or is it the humiliation of them being so big that they cannot ignore tiny Tibet as being independent? Any comments appreciated--Nancy
Hard to say exactly why China wants Tibet, and in fact I suppose the only reason they would offer would be that it used to be theirs. Which I haven't verified (centuries ago we're talking, seeing as it was independent for a long, long time).
There aren't a whole lot of natural resources, although from what I understand, China has been building factories and mines and whatnot there, unfortunately polluting the extremely clean and sparse environment.
The best answer I heard about China's desire for Tibet is due to its strategic location on the border with India and Nepal. The Himalayas run along the border, and so provide quite a formidable barrier to anyone wishing to enter/storm the country. From atop these mountains, one can look down into India. If Tibet was independent, perhaps other nations would use Tibet to get into China, or would take it over themselves and cause considerable problems for the great motherland.
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