By Tenzing Sonam
More than two months have passed since the conclusion of the much-anticipated sixth round of talks between representatives of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Chinese government. The only clue as to the outcome of these talks was in a terse statement issued by Special Envoy Lodi Gyari immediately after his return from China on 7 July: “Both sides expressed in strong terms their divergent positions and views on a number of issues. Our dialogue process has reached a critical stage. We conveyed our serious concerns in the strongest possible manner on the overall Tibetan issue and made some concrete proposals for implementation if our dialogue process is to go forward.”
Since then, there has been no further elucidation from Dharamsala regarding the exact nature of the impasse, or the “concrete proposals” set forth, or whether there is, in fact, any chance that the “dialogue process is to go forward”. In the meantime, various other events, both inside and outside Tibet, are threatening to derail the Middle Way Approach and make it increasingly irrelevant. And other forces are now at play, which are willy-nilly determining the direction in which the Tibet movement is headed.
While Dharamsala fidgets, China has forcefully begun to lay out its cards. Its official attacks on His Holiness have continued unabated. Most recently, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Jiang Yu described His Holiness as “a political exile who has been engaged in separatist activities under the disguise of religion. Wherever he goes, in whatever name, what he does is not simply religious activities but represents a political force to split the motherland and advocate Tibet independence.” This gives us some idea about the nature of the “divergent positions” mentioned by Lodi Gyari. It also indicates that as far as the Chinese are concerned, the Middle Way Approach is a non-starter because they don’t trust even the fundamental concession on which it is based – that His Holiness no longer seeks independence. Meanwhile, China’s own solution to the Tibet question has been spelled out in the recent implementation of Order No. 5 of China’s State Administration of Religious Affairs, the so-called “Management Measures for the Reincarnation of ‘Living Buddhas’ in Tibetan Buddhism”, which effectively requires all reincarnate lamas to be approved by the state. As far as Beijing is concerned, the problem of Tibet is the problem of the Dalai Lama, and Order No. 5 effectively lays the groundwork for taking control of his reincarnation once he is no longer there.
So where does the Tibet movement go from here? Dharamsala’s resounding silence in the aftermath of the sixth round of talks may be a sign that it is rethinking its options. The government-in-exile’s controversial policy of mollifying China by asking Tibetans and their supporters to refrain from carrying out political demonstrations seems to have died a quiet death. But more significantly, there are growing signs that the Tibetan people are taking matters into their own hands.
The March 10 demonstrations worldwide this year attracted record numbers of participants. After years of muted protest, Free Tibet banners and slogans were once again openly raised. This momentum came to a head in Delhi during the launch of the campaign against the Beijing Olympics organized by the Tibetan People’s Movement, and the Tibetan Youth Congress-led hunger strike, which drew an estimated 20,000 Tibetans from all over India and Nepal to the Indian capital. This overwhelming show of support must be seen in the context of the Tibetan Youth Congress’ continuing commitment to independence as the only goal for the Tibetan struggle. It is also an indication of the profound sense of frustration that Tibetans feel with regard to the lack of progress in their political struggle. After years of being rendered ineffectual, faced by a profound and debilitating personal dilemma – complete devotion to His Holiness, and therefore to the Middle Way Approach, on the one hand, and the instinctive desire to fight for freedom on the other – these actions must be seen to represent the choice that they are finally making. That the hunger strikers, who represented a cross-section of Tibetans, rejected Samdhong Rinpoche’s plea to end their action also showed just how wide the gulf between Dharamsala and the ordinary Tibetan is becoming. In the end, it was only a direct appeal from His Holiness that persuaded the hunger strikers and the Tibetan Youth Congress to call off the strike.
Meanwhile, in Tibet we have seen a string of incidents – from the ongoing controversy over the use of animal skins, sparked directly by His Holiness’ appeal, and the much-publicized public cry for his return made by the nomad, Runggye Adrak, in Lithang, to the more recent arrests of seven teenagers in Amdo for writing pro-independence graffiti – that continues to expose the Chinese lie that His Holiness has little or no support inside Tibet. These events convincingly demonstrate that despite some economic progress, Tibetans inside Tibet continue to revere their exiled leader and that beneath the country’s tightly controlled surface, a deep frustration and anger seethes. They also send out a strong warning to the Chinese about the fragility of their hold over the hearts and minds of Tibetans and will make them redouble their efforts to neutralize His Holiness’ influence inside Tibet. In the wake of the Runggye Adrak incident, the authorities have already launched an aggressive “re-education” campaign in Lithang. Over the next few months, particularly in the lead-up to the Beijing Olympics, we can expect more of the same throughout Tibet.
In March 2009, 50 years will have passed since China’s takeover of Tibet and the flight into exile of His Holiness. The Chinese have made it clear that the battle against His Holiness is, in their own words, “a fight to the death”. Dharamsala must respond forcefully to China’s attacks on His Holiness and its pre-emptive moves to snuff out what remains of the Tibet movement. And it must heed the expressions of growing desperation among its own people who are crying out for a more clear-cut political policy to rally behind. Now, more than ever, Tibetans, both inside and outside Tibet, need to be motivated, committed and united in the interests of our common cause. The alternative is to wait…and witness the disintegration of our struggle and the end of Tibet as we know it.
Tenzing Sonam is a writer and filmmaker based in New Delhi. www.whitecranefilms.com
