By TOM LASSETER | McClatchy Newspapers |Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2012

ABA (Ngaba), China–  The monk reached into the folds of his red robe, pulled out a small notebook, and gently slipped from its pages a tiny photograph.

The man in the creased picture was a relative. He used to be a fellow monk at the monastery perched in snow-wrapped mountains outside the town ofAba. Then a Chinese security officer killed him, the monk said.

China's Peoples Armed Police deployed in the Tibetan areas (16 March 2011) | file picture

It is a sorrow that cannot be spoken of in public. A local government “working team” visits the monastery often, looking for signs of discontent, according to monks there. Sometimes, they said, when returning to their living quarters from chanting or studying, the monks find a door busted in and possessions scattered after a search.

The monk showed the snapshot as a way of explaining why ethnic Tibetans, mostly current or former Buddhist clergy, are setting themselves on fire in Aba and surrounding regions in an unprecedented show of protest against Chinese rule. Since March 2011, between 20 and 24 have committed self-immolations, according to rights groups. Of those, at least 13 are said to have died.

“China in our eyes is not fair or peaceful,” said the monk, a man in his early 40s who, like every ethnic Tibetan interviewed for this story, did so on the condition that he not be named and that certain details be withheld, for fear of getting dragged off by police. “We are suffering a lot in our hearts, and when we can no longer bear it we burn ourselves to death.”

The Chinese government and its media have confirmed some of the self-immolations and denied others. But the government also goes to extensive lengths to prevent outsiders from visiting this area. Police routinely block roads, search vehicles and turn back foreigners, especially journalists.

A McClatchy Newspapers reporter last week became the first from an American news organization to make it toAbasince the chain of self-immolations began. To do so, he hid on the rear floor of a vehicle under two backpacks and a sleeping bag as it passed through multiple checkpoints.

Beijing has long blamed unrest in ethnic Tibetan areas on conspiracies hatched by the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan spiritual leader who fled to India after a failed uprising against Chinese rule in 1959.

But conversations with ethnic Tibetans here and elsewhere in Sichuan province, where almost all of the self-immolations have occurred, suggest that China’s authoritarian policies designed to tamp down disorder are fueling the troubles.

As the nation’s vice president and presumptive next leader, Xi Jinping, tours the United States this week amid talk of greater understanding, his government at home continues to flood a wide swath of ethnic Tibetan lands with armed troops.

At the entrance to Aba last week, at least seven police officers manned a checkpoint. When an SUV approached with a Han Chinese man in the front seat, it was allowed to pass without a question – as the McClatchy Newspapers reporter lay in the back.

Ethnic Tibetans face tougher scrutiny. One Tibetan from a nearby village described the interior of his taxi being almost ripped apart during a search at the entry of Aba, which is known in Tibetan as Ngaba.

About the same time the reporter entered Aba on Saturday, an 18-year-old woman in a nunnery near the town’s outskirts was setting herself on fire. The ethnic Tibetan nun, Tenzin Choedon, reportedly called out slogans against the government as the flames took her life.

Sections of the town famous for its Tibetan Buddhist monasteries have come to resemble an armed camp. A few blocks from the entrance, paramilitary police stood behind riot gates with shotguns and assault rifles. Three large troop-carrier trucks sat on the side of the road, flanked by more men with guns. Up ahead, traffic wound through further riot gates and troop positions not unlike those used in counterinsurgency efforts.

The security was so dense that it was impossible to speak with clergy or, indeed, anyone in Aba because of the risk of bringing danger to those interviewed. The Internet had been shut off and efforts to send text messages fromAbafailed repeatedly.

Police roadblocks and patrols in the region begin just outside the city of Chengdu, hundreds of miles away. Even in that sprawling metropolis,Chengdu’s main Tibetan quarter is stacked with police who stand guard outside restaurants and shops that sell incense and religious paraphernalia.

An attempt in November to reach Aba ended with a McClatchy reporter being held and questioned by Chinese police for two hours before he was released and told to return to Beijing.

Aba, in the high mountains and mist, gained international attention as an epicenter of Tibetan turmoil last March when a monk from the Kirti monastery lit himself ablaze. He was reportedly commemorating the third anniversary of 2008 demonstrations and riots across the Tibetan Plateau, includingAba, which ended in bloodshed.

After that self-immolation, some 300 other monks were allegedly hauled away from Kirti in trucks, sparking concern from the United Nations.

Chinese officials point out that they have spent billions of dollars constructing hospitals, roads and schools inTibet, which is referred to byBeijingas an autonomous region, and nearby areas like those inSichuan.

Or as a billboard depicting green fields and blue waters outside Maierma Township, approximately 20 miles from Aba, puts it: “Building a civilized, new Aba together.”

Many ethnic Tibetans recognize the benefits of the government’s projects. But they chafe at the government’s restrictions on free expression of their culture and religious practices, and they speak of anguish over being separated from the Dalai Lama.

The lingering threat of police showing up at their doorstep has by all accounts made the situation even more complicated for ethnic Tibetans.

“If you say the government is not treating us well, that’s not completely true, they are providing us with good things,” said a 26-year-old small-time trader in Hongyuan, which sits 65 miles or more to the east of Aba, depending on which winding road is taken. “But on the other side, the police are behaving badly. We don’t know what to say about the situation.”

The man, in a brown leather coat and sunglasses pushed up his forehead, thought it over and then said, “You should talk with somebody inAba.”

His younger brother, sitting in the family’s living room under a single light bulb, spoke up: “Of course things are not good, they are killing people.”

The brothers turned to their father, a man in his late 40s who had a green camouflage jacket slung over his shoulders and a cigarette in hand.

 Why were Tibetans self-immolating?

The father first wanted it made clear that he would not “take legal responsibility” for his words, and then said, “The Chinese government issues messages that these things are happening because of foreign plots, but of course the people lighting themselves on fire are local people … ”

The father paused and looked at the small stove in front of him, which was heating the room with burning stacks of yak dung.

The younger brother, in his early 20s and with plans to move to a bigger city, finished the sentence with an assertion that no one contradicted.

“The people lighting themselves on fire do it because they are suffering … or because one of their family members has been killed by the government and they are now filled with hatred,” he said. “They are doing these things because they want to express their pain and their hardship.”

The majority of Tibetans approached in the area said they couldn’t discuss such issues.

One herder near the town of Chali, about 30 miles east of Aba, gestured for a reporter to follow him to his house. Once inside, the 67-year-old man with tough, thick hands shook his head, saying, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I don’t dare talk about this.”

Walking back out across a field, the herder in brown corduroy pants and a dark winter jacket had a piece of advice: Listen to what the monks have to say.

The monk with the dead relative had marched in a demonstration against the Chinese government during the tumult of March 2008. When the police later came, the monk said, they surrounded the monastery and threatened to destroy it if those who had participated in the incident didn’t turn themselves in.

Official documents describing his arrest said that he and others had taken part in an action that “disrupted public order” and caused a traffic jam. The monk keeps the papers tucked in a plastic bag even though they are written in Mandarin, a language he doesn’t understand well.

The monk said he was held in jail and fed such small amounts of thin porridge that it became difficult to stand up. He was then transferred to a reform-through-labor camp. “They told me that the Dalai Lama group is an obstacle to our road to peace,” said the monk, who was reluctant to describe the nearly two-year experience.

His relative never made it back – he died in custody, the result of being beaten in the head and then not receiving medical treatment, according to the monk and others at the monastery.

The monk returned to the area nearAbain 2010. Much was as he left it. Candles made of yak-butter still flicker in the night. Old men patiently twirl prayer wheels. Young monks with freshly shaven heads scamper up and down steep hillsides.

The monk found that one of his framed pictures of the Dalai Lama had survived in a hiding spot. The glass was cracked and missing a piece, but the rainbow-colored frame and the image itself were intact.

With the ongoing government searches and his record of jail time, having the photograph around could be hazardous for the monk.

He kept it anyway.

By Ming Xia | The Diplomat | February 7, 2012

News today that three Tibetan herders may have set themselves alight highlights the increasing frequency with which Tibetans (usually monks or nuns) have been turning to self-immolation, bringing to 19 the total that have done so in the past year.

Tibetans’ are forced to bow down as they are taken away by Chinese security forces. (From a Chinese military forum)

Why are Tibetans setting themselves on fire with such frequency? The Chinese government has denied any responsibility, instead blaming the Dalai Lama for encouraging such radical actions. However, this claim doesn’t stand up to scrutiny. The Chinese government has told the West that the Dalai Lama is irrelevant to Tibetans, while telling Chinese and Tibetans within China that he has been marginalized to the point of becoming a “political orphan.” It’s therefore illogical to accuse him of being the mastermind behind radical actions taken by Tibetans.

The reality is that the Dalai Lama single-handedly introduced democracy to the Tibetan government in exile immediately after he fled toIndiain 1959. He established an elected parliament, while the process of democratization was accelerated by his receipt of the Nobel Prize in Peace in 1989, which also bolstered secularization in the government. Last year, the Dalai Lama announced plans for his full political retirement, and with Harvard-educated lawyer Lobsang Sangay directly elected to lead a Cabinet comprising laypersons from young, well-educated, diverse and cosmopolitan backgrounds.

Such success, has, unfortunately, only deepenedBeijing’s anxiety over – and hostility toward – the Dalai Lama and Tibetans. For the past five years, the military, paramilitary police, and law enforcement forces have conducted searches, arrests, blockades and attacks against monasteries and their residents. The Communist Party has, meanwhile, escalated its efforts to “modernize” Tibet, including trying to brainwash Tibetans with themes of atheism, materialism and patriotism. One example of this has been the intensification of the enforcement of its 15-year-old ban on hanging portraits of the Dalai Lama in monasteries. During this year’s two New Year’s periods (Chinese and Tibetan), the Chinese government reportedly sent a million Chinese flags and portraits of four Communist Chinese leaders (Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping, Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao) to monasteries. The government has also vowed to make every monastery subscribe to The People’s Daily and The Tibetan Daily, two important Communist Party newspapers.

In addition, the Chinese government has further broadened its infiltration into religious affairs and tightened control over monasteries in an effort to impose its propaganda agenda, while uncooperative monks and nuns have been expelled. It has been reported that inLhasa, the capital of the Tibetan Autonomous Region, there are more Han Chinese than Tibetans, more soldiers than monks, and more surveillance cameras than windows.

President Hu Jintao (a former Party secretary inTibet) and Zhou Yongkang (a former Party secretary in Sichuan, where most of the self-immolations have occurred, and the current czar for internal security), should be seen as directly responsible for the current repressive policy towardTibet.

For believers, Buddhism is seen as a way of ending suffering and death. But as Tibetan Buddhism has lost its autonomy, the unique culture and identity of Tibetans has also risked becoming extinct. Now, instead of choosing between good or bad, monks and nuns feel they have no choice but to resort to self-immolation to communicate their grievances and protests.

According to various Buddhist teachings in the school of the Greater Vehicle (Mahayana), suicide can be commended under special conditions, for example if it is conducted “out of profound inner conviction” that no good can any longer be served by the retention of the physical body, or if it is in higher service to society. Indeed, it is explicitly in The Lotus Sutra (Fahua Jing) that “setting fire to the body” or “burning the fingers or toes” might be deemed a great offering to Buddha if the Three Jewels that guide Tibetan Buddhists (Buddha, Dharma and Sangha) have to be defended and honored.

It has been reported that the self-immolating monks and nuns shouted out their wishes for the return of Dalai Lama and the freedom ofTibet.  If such self-immolations are to end, the global community must mobilize, and citizens must pressure their governments to work to encourage the halting of the persecution of Tibetan Buddhism and the genocide of Tibetan culture that is being perpetrated by the Chinese state. The Chinese government has shown no sign of changing course in part because global society hasn’t demonstrated its moral outrage.

Tibetan refugee and activist Lobsang Sangay once said that: “Tibetans have no oil; even our oxygen is thinner than in other places. Lamas are what we have. So the West does not care much about us.”

With more Tibetan deaths seemingly inevitable, the international community should show that the lives of Tibetans are at least as important as fluctuating oil prices. Now is time for it to show that it is willing to act to save an endangered people.

Ming Xia is a professor of Political Science at the Graduate Center and the College of Staten Island, the City University of New York.

Press Statement |6 Feb, 2012

The Central Tibetan Administration is deeply concerned and alarmed over the recent news of three more self-immolations in Serthar (Sichuan) onFriday, February 3, 2012.

Unconfirmed reports state that three Tibetans were involved, two of them aged in the 60s and 30s respectively. All three have sustained injuries, but their exact condition and whereabouts remain unknown.

Chidrel Kalon Dicki Chhoyang addressing the Press at DIIR Auditorium. Photo DIIR

We also hear reports of build-up of security forces and police in and around the city of Lhasa, and its key monasteries, Ganden, Sera, and Drepung. Furthermore, draconian measures to restrict movement of Tibetans in the capital could further aggravate the tense situation inTibet. With Tibetan New Year on February 22nd and the March 10th anniversary of the 1959 Tibetan uprising coming up, we fear there will be further bloodshed and loss of lives. The Central Tibetan Administration, the Tibetan community’s democratically-elected representative, urges the international community to directly and immediately engage the Central Chinese leadership to assert its control over local authorities and forbid police violence and shooting of unarmed citizens.

Drastic actions, such as the self-immolations, indicate to us that the Chinese policies in Tibet have reached new levels of repression. Not mere acts of protest, these actions convey a message which cannot be ignored. They represent an emphatic rejection of the continued occupation of Tibet and repressive policies of the Chinese government. They stand firm for the freedom of the Tibetan people. Over fifty years ago, thousands of Tibetans were forced to flee into exile due to the Chinese occupation of Tibet. Since then, a broad global network of friends of Tibet has been built. Today, at this critical time, we wish to express our heartfelt gratitude to all those individuals, non governmental organizations, Tibet support groups, and the various foreign governments who have recently publicly expressed their concern for the present situation inTibet. Your unwavering support for truth and justice has made it possible for the Tibetan issue to still be alive.

We call on the Chinese government to address the underlying grievances of the Tibetan people. Only then, will there be a lasting solution to the escalating tensions in the region and the longstanding dispute between Tibetans and the Chinese government. As witnessed recently, Tibetan areas have been closed off and members of the press have been denied access. The international community must let leaders in Beijing know unequivocally that the world is concerned and closely watching events inside Tibet.

To show solidarity and to raise its voice in support of the fundamental rights of the Tibetan people at this critical time, we invite the international community to participate in a worldwide vigil for Tibet on February 8, 2012. We request everyone to conduct these vigils peacefully, in accordance with the laws of your country, and with dignity. In Dharamsala, the Central Tibetan Administration will hold a prayer service at 3 PM at the Tsuglakhang (MainTemple).

Kalon Dicki Chhoyang
Dept. of Information and International Relations
February 6, 2012

Radio Free Asia, 04 February 2012

The fiery protests come as Chinese authorities widen crackdown.

Three Tibetans have set themselves on fire in the troubled county of Serthar (in Chinese, Seda) in China’s Sichuan province, the latest in a series of self-immolations against Chinese rule, sources said Saturday.

News of the self-immolations in a remote village in Serthar on Friday surfaced only a day later due to a clampdown in communications by Chinese authorities following a string of bloody protests a week ago.

Image of a fire on Flickr

“On Feb. 3, three Tibetans self-immolated in protest against Chinese policy at a place called Phuwu in Serthar and one of them died,” an exile source told RFA. The area is near the border with Sichuan’s neighboring Qinghai province, the source said.

“This area is far from the main Serthar county town. The survivors are seriously injured though the details are difficult to obtain due to the shutting down of communication lines in the area,” another source said.

“However, [in the protests] they had called for freedom for Tibet and the return of the Dalai Lama.”

Twenty self-immolations

A third source also confirmed the self-immolations, the number of which has climbed to 20 since February 2009 amid growing tensions in Tibetan regions of China where people have been protesting against Beijing’s rule and calling for the return of the Dalai Lama, Tibet’s spiritual leader.

The identity of the person who perished in the self-immolation could not be immediately confirmed but the two who were seriously injured were Tsaptsai Tsering, 60, and Kyarel, 30, sources told RFA.

Serthar was among three counties in Sichuan province where Tibetans protested against Chinese rule last week in which rights and exile groups believe at least six were killed and 60 injured, some critically. The other counties were Draggo (in Chinese, Luhuo) and Dzamthang (in Chinese, Rangtang).

Official Chinese media reported only two Tibetans were killed after “mobs” armed with, guns, knives and stones attacked local police.

Chinese authorities have ramped up security across Tibetan areas—from Lhasa, capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region, to the Amdo and Kham regions—following the protests, according to sources.

Telephone links to the protest areas have also been mostly cut and more than a 100 protesters have been detained, some sources said.

Tensions

Tensions in the Tibet Autonomous Region and in Tibetan-populated areas in China’s provinces have not subsided since anti-China protests swept through the Tibetan Plateau in March 2008.

Chinese authorities have blamed the Dalai Lama for the tense situation, saying he is encouraging the self-immolations, which run contrary to Buddhist teachings.

But the Dalai Lama blamedChina’s “ruthless and illogical” policy towardTibet.

He called on the Chinese government to change its “repressive” policies inTibet, citing the crackdown on monasteries and policies curtailing the use of the Tibetan language.

DHARAMSHALA: Expressing its deep concern over the reports of killing of Tibetans by the Chinese security forces in northeastern Tibet and the lockdown of Tibet, the International Parliamentarians has called for a UN-led fact-finding mission to observe the situation in Tibet.

Logo of the International Network of Parliamentarians on Tibet

In a statement on 31 January, International Network of Parliamentarians on Tibet (INPaT) said it is extremely concerned for the news that several Tibetans in Draggo, Kardze and in Dzamthang, Ngaba have been shot dead by Chinese security forces last week.

“INPaT considers the use of force not an acceptable response on the part of the Chinese authorities toward peaceful protests carried out by Tibetans to excercise right to freedom of expression and assembly,” the statement said.

“INPaT remains deeply concerned that these cases of extrajudicial killings of Tibetans has happened in the background of self-immolation protests by 17 Tibetans since 2009 with 12 of them having succumbed to their injuries.

“INPaT deplores that according to various sources there is a massive deployment of security forces inTibetwith journalists and other independent observers prevented from visiting Tibetan areas, especially in Sichuan province.

“INPaT calls upon the Chinese authorities to provide adequate information on the well-being and whereabouts of Tibetans who have been detained since the first self-immolation last year by Ven. Phuntsok on 16 March and to withdraw the security measures imposed, including at religious institutions.

“INPaT welcomes that parliamentarians in many countries have expressed their concerns on the overall human rights situation inTibet, especially after an alarming number of self-immolation protests by Tibetans. While remaining in solidarity with the aspirations of Tibetan people, INPaT joins the call upon Tibetans not to sacrifice their valuable lives through self-immolations but instead maintain their collective voice and strength to face the challenges from the Chinese authorities.

“INPaT calls upon the Chinese authorities to promptly follow-up on its invitation to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to conduct a fact-finding mission to China and that such a visit ensures adequate time for observing the situation in Tibet. INPaT believes that such a visit by the United Nations chief human rights official can help convey an independent assessment on the human rights crisis faced by the six million Tibetans,” the statement noted.

133 Members from 33 worldwide Parliaments who took part in the 5th World Parliamentarians’ Convention on Tibet (18/19 November 2009,Rome) adopted the “Rome Declaration on Tibet” which constituted the International Network for Parliamentarians on Tibet (INPaT).

By Anirudh Mathur |27 January 2012

The Dalai Lama spoke to Anirudh Mathur about Chinese protests, the future of the Tibetan movement, the stagnancy of capitalism, and his amazing vitality. The full interview can be found in Outlook Magazine,India:

A Bodhissatva is an enlightened being; one who has postponed their own Nirvana in order to serve humanity. And the 14th reincarnation of Avalokitesvara, the Bodhisattva of compassion, certainly fits this definition. One of the most prominent figures in the world, as the driving force and symbol of the Tibetan movement, and as an “ocean of wisdom” to millions of Buddhists, the 14th reincarnation of the Bodhissatva of compassion needs little introduction. We all know the Dalai Lama.

I remember as Frozen Planet drew to a close, a friend on my staircase commented that there could be no one with more trademark warmth than David Attenborough. I thought that if there were one person who could, it would be the Dalai Lama. And his embrace upon my reception, full with beaming smile and characteristic laugh, confirmed this.

The whole process up until that point had been a nightmare. Securing the interview and finding and arranging the freelance had been incredibly time consuming. But speaking to the Nobel Peace Laureate in his tranquil residence in the hill station of Dharamsala,India, as the previous year drew to a close, is something that I could never forget.

I started by querying whether the protest and democratization movements of 2011 would soon extend to China and also whether he thought the forthcoming changes to the Chinese political elite (the politburo standing committee) would affect Tibet’s future.

His Holiness the Dalai with Anirudh Mathur

His frankness and pragmatism was noticeable – 52 years of exile can have that effect. But truly impressive was the genuine optimism that still underlays his thoughts. “Whilst it is difficult to say whether it [the protest movement] will soon extend to China, freedom of speech, freedom of religion and the rule of law are much desired. In China, more voices are being heard for these things – I have met a number of Chinese people, even from the mainland who express such desires.”

Further, regarding politburo changes, he was convinced that although “individuals make a difference, dictatorship, unlike in Burma or Pakistan, is institutionalized in China. The person can change, but the system will remain unless the next leader is very strong, like Deng [Xiaoping].” This would seem to explain his comment why “there hasn’t been much effect despite China’s premier Wen Jiabao saying that China needs a western style of democracy.”

With his trademark simplicity of logic he added, “I met someone from Mainland China and said that if this view of the Chinese premier is wrong, then he deserves punishment. But if his view is right, then it is right to implement it.”

2011 was meant to mark the reinvigoration of the Tibetan movement. With the transfer of temporal power to the newly elected Tibetan Prime Minister, the year raised issues over the long term momentum of the movement, and its potential longevity. A particular area of interest was how Tibetans of the next two generations would carry forward the momentum of the Tibetan movement, given they are technically Indian citizens, and many of their grandparents may not have even seen Tibet.

Acknowledging that this longevity could be a potential problem, he responded, “till now, the movement has been very strong and satisfactory. But the future depends on education and awareness of Tibetan culture and Buddhism.”  Would this educational drive and awareness not diminish in the modern day though? “There is promise – interest in Tibetan culture and Buddhism is increasing in many places like Europe and even China. Scientists are showing interest in Buddhist philosophy and ethics and that is reflected upon the younger generation. Today’s Tibetan youth are more spiritual than those of similar age were in the 1960s and 1970s.”

But don’t previous statements by him that issues like climate change are more important than Tibetan autonomy undermine momentum? If he can say this, and he is the figurehead of the Tibetan people, what signal does it send to younger Tibetans who aren’t sure what the real significance or importance of their movement is?

It seems, though, his statement has been mis-portrayed. “I mentioned Tibetan ecology. Politically, once we develop some kind of understanding and Chinese leaders become more mature, our problems are easily solved. But ecologically, the damage is already there, from mining and dams and other such things. Policy cannot change ecological damage that has already occurred. Therefore, the political problems can wait, as the ecological damage will remain forever.”

While maintaining that as per his actions in 1986 and 1987 he would not promote a Tibetan uprising if things got out of control with violence, and instead resign, he felt it more difficult to say whether he could comfortably promote a non-violent uprising that he knew the Chinese would repress with arms.

“I see myself as a spokesperson and not a leader: from March, I handed over political power to the new Tibetan PM. Therefore it wouldn’t be my responsibility; the decision [to promote it] is the boss’s, and the Tibetan people are the boss.”

Astounded at the frustration I am sure he must feel, particularly regarding the situation of those actually in the ground in Tibet, I enquired how he manages to cope. Once more, his optimistic pragmatism shines through.

“We are followers of the Indian tradition. Gandhiji, in most situations, remained smiling. Very occasionally, he’d shout, but mostly he stayed peaceful. That didn’t mean there wasn’t a problem. He’d look at the problem and believed that if the problem could be solved, the effort to solve it should be put in. If it can’t be solved, then it’s possible to be frustrated. I believe the same.”

Moving on to financial capitalism, the antithesis of Tibetan Buddhism in many ways, I was interested to find whether there was almost a sense of vindication for him in the West’s economic decline. Did it demonstrate that a simpler way of life was a better way of life?

“Overall, I feel that—and not just because of this crisis. There is a huge rich-poor gap around the world; also overpopulation. This year, we had the seventh billion person come into the world, next eight billion, and then nine billion. Resources are not sufficient. Ultimately, our stomach needs grain, not more factories and machines. Recently, near Delhi, I saw fields being turned into factories. China has this problem also.”

But the fundamental problem remained overpopulation and the lack of sustainability of our lifestyle, “we can’t all have a US lifestyle.”

Nevertheless, whatever the economic creations of the Western world, and despite noting inconveniences from the West’s consideration that good relations with China are important, he speaks favourably of western help. Rejecting the idea that an economically stagnant West would compromise Tibet by giving China more leverage, he notes that the West always mentions Tibet to Chinese counterparts.

Moreover he expresses that increased Chinese leverage need not be disastrous. “Many Chinese are starting to really believe in democracy, openness and transparency now. These Chinese are also very supportive. In the long run, this change in the Chinese themselves will cause real change for us.”

I finish by asking the secret to his vitality. At his age to maintain such an active and demanding lifestyle is truly incredible, particularly when I consider long weeks in the vac spent eating rice pudding and watching How I Met Your Mother exhausting. Indeed, the day after the interview he was set to travel to Bodh Gaya to deliver a series of ‘teachings’ attended by Buddhists from around the world.

Was it daily meditation, which gave him his glow? Or if not, then surely it came through some metaphysical presence? Apparently, no. “Eight to nine hours of sleep. I go to bed at 6.30 to 7 and wake at 3.30 daily.” It seems that not everything requires hours and years of discipline and dedication.

As he accompanied me to the door, I made sure to throw in that we in Oxford would love to host him when he is next in the UK. “Let me see, if you can make an opportunity for me to come toOxford, then I will.” The Bodhissatva of compassion: coming soon to a college near you?

© Outlook Magazine,India

27 JANUARY 2012

Chinese police shot dead another Tibetan protester in the restive Sichuan province, rights groups said Friday, bringing to at least three the number killed in deadly clashes this week.

Urgen, a 20-year-old Tibetan, died Thursday inSichuan’s Rangtang county when police fired into a crowd trying to stop them from detaining another man, the US-based International Campaign for Tibet (ICT) and India-based TCHRD said.

It was the third reported deadly clash this week in western Sichuan– which has big populations of ethnic Tibetans, many of whom complain of repression — in the worst unrest in Tibetan-inhabited regions in years.

Security forces also fired into two separate crowds of protesters in Luhuo and Seda towns on Monday and Tuesday — also in Sichuan, a province in China’s southwest that borders Tibet — killing at least two.

A Rangtang government official surnamed Wu told AFP Friday that there had been no protest.

“It is not convenient to talk about this. There is no need to contact others at this moment. Nobody will tell you anything,” he said.

Calls to at least 16 places in Rangtang including restaurants and hotels were either met with no comments or respondents said they had no knowledge of the matter.

Armed Chinese PLA soldiers walk past ethnic Tibetan graffiti in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan province on January 27. Chinese police shot dead another Tibetan protester in the restive Sichuan province, rights groups said Friday, bringing to at least three the number killed in deadly clashes this week. / AFP Photo

The information is difficult to verify independently as the area appears completely sealed off. AFP reporters who tried to access western Sichuan this week were turned back by police on several occasions.

But according to ICT and TCHRD, which have sources with contacts in the area, the incident in Rangtang was triggered by a youth named Tarpa, who posted a leaflet stating Tibet must be free and the Dalai Lama must return.

He printed his name and photo on the leaflet and said authorities could arrest him if they wanted, ICT said.

Later that day, security forces came to detain him at home, and as they were taking him away, people tried to stop them. Police then shot into the crowd, killing Urgen and wounding several others, the group said.

The unrest comes at a time of rising tensions in Tibetan-inhabited areas, where at least 16 people have set themselves ablaze in less than a year — including four this month alone — prompting an increase in security.

Advocacy groups say the unrest stems from growing grievance among Tibetans on issues such as religious repression, a lack of freedom, and a feeling that their culture is being eroded by an influx of majority Han Chinese.

But Beijing insists that Tibetans enjoy freedom of religious belief and says their lives have been made better by huge ongoing investment into Tibetan-inhabited areas.

It blames the Dalai Lama –Tibet’s spiritual leader who fled China for India in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule — for fomenting the unrest and trying to split Tibet from the rest ofChina, a claim he denies.

News of the latest bout of unrest comes after the New York-based Human Rights Watch warned protests in Tibetan-inhabited areas were gathering pace, with at least seven occurring in January — not including the Rangtang clash.

A researcher for ICT based inIndia’s Dharamsala — whereTibet’s exiled government is based — also said at least 136 Tibetans had been detained this month or had disappeared in Sichuan.

“The police offer no documents to families to tell them about where their family members are,” Zorgyi told AFP.

On top of this, an additional 30 Tibetans went missing in the last few days after Chinese authorities caught them protesting in two towns in Banma county, he said.

As Chinese everywhere were celebrating the first couple of days of the Year of Dragon on January 23rd and 24th, 2012. Chinese police fired indiscriminately on hundreds of Tibetans who had gathered peacefully to claim their basic rights in Drakgo, Serthar, Ngaba, Gyarong, and other neighboring Tibetan areas. Six Tibetans were reportedly killed and around sixty injured, some critically.

Because of gruesome acts such as these and the systematic repression of Tibetans, the resentment and anger amongst Tibetans against Chinese government has only grown since the massive uprising of 2008.

Kalon Tripa Lobsang Sangay

Ever since the invasion ofTibet, the Chinese government has claimed that it seeks to create a socialist paradise. However, basic human rights are being denied to Tibetans, the fragile environment is being destroyed, Tibetan language and culture is being assimilated, portraits of His Holiness the Dalai Lama are banned, and Tibetans are being economically marginalized. Tibet is in virtual lockdown. Foreigners have been barred from travelling toTibetnow and the entire region is essentially under undeclared martial law.

I urge the Chinese leadership to heed the cries of the Tibetan protestors and those who have committed self-immolation. You will never address the genuine grievances of Tibetans and restore stability in Tibet through violence and killing. The only way to resolve the Tibet issue and bring about lasting peace is by respecting the rights of the Tibetan people and through dialogue. As someone deeply committed to peaceful dialogue, the use of violence against Tibetans is unacceptable and must be strongly condemned by all people in China and around the world.

I call on the international community to show solidarity and to raise your voices in support of the fundamental rights of the Tibetan people at this critical time. I request that the international community and the United Nations send a fact-finding delegation to Tibet and that the world media be given access to the region as well. The leaders in Beijing must know that killing its own “family members” is in clear violation of international and Chinese laws, and such actions will cast further doubts on China’s moral legitimacy and their standing in world affairs.

I want to tell my dear brothers and sisters inside Tibet that we hear your cries loud and clear. We urge you not to despair and refrain from extreme measures. We feel your pain and will not allow the sacrifices you have made go in vain. You all are in our heart and prayers each and every day.

To my fellow Tibetans, I request you not to celebrate Losar (Tibetan New Year), which falls on February 22 this year. However, please observe the basic customary religious rituals such as going to temple, burning incense and making traditional offerings.

To demonstrate our solidarity with Tibetans in Tibet, I urge Tibetans and our friends around the world, to participate in a worldwide vigil on Wednesday, February 8, 2012. Let’s send a loud and clear message to the Chinese government that violence and killing of innocent Tibetans is unacceptable! I request everyone to conduct these vigils peacefully, in accordance with the laws of your country, and with dignity.

A video message of this statement is available with the following link: www.tibetonline.tv and also can click here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUmpJXs0Krg&feature=youtu.be

China must avoid using excessive force in response to protests and allow independent monitors into areas of protest, Amnesty International said today after Chinese security forces in Sichuan Province reportedly fired on Tibetan protestors for a second successive day.

Chinese authorities have dismissed reports based on eyewitness accounts of deadly clashes between police and Tibetan protesters as “hype”.

“The Chinese authorities are responding only with repression and a security crackdown to an already volatile situation, instead of addressing long-standing human rights grievances on the part of Tibetans,” said Sam Zarifi, Amnesty International’s Asia-Pacific director.

“The situation has not improved in Tibetan areas since 2008 when tensions exploded into violence. Grievances regarding restrictions on religious and cultural freedoms have gotten worse, not better.”

According to the official Xinhua news agency, Chinese security forces fired on protesters in Drango County (in Chinese, Luhuo) on Monday, killing at least one.

Five police officers and several protesters were reportedly injured. The protesters are also said to have smashed shops in the area.

Independent Tibetan sources told Amnesty International that at least 36 protesters were injured, several of whom are in critical condition. New reports of protests in other parts of Sichuan Province and shootings by the police emerged today.

According to unconfirmed reports, the security forces today opened fire on Tibetan protesters in Serthar (Seda in Chinese) county in Sichuan province, killing two and injuring others.

This is a third reported incident of police shooting at Tibetan protestors in less than two weeks, although Amnesty International is unable to independently confirm the reports.

No foreign media or observers have been allowed into the area, making events difficult to confirm. The authorities have stated that they will investigate the Monday incident.

“The Chinese government must ensure that the investigation is independent, impartial and effective. They should also promptly investigate the other reports of excessive use of force,” said Sam Zarifi.

Amnesty International repeated its request that the Chinese government allow independent monitors, for instance the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, into the country.

“The Chinese government has displayed increasingly repressive behaviour in ethnic minority areas such as Tibet. That’s why we are worried about further violence and bloodshed,” said Sam Zarifi.

“Chinese security forces should exercise restraint and only use firearms when absolutely necessary and as a last resort. Lethal force may only be intentionally used strictly to protect life.”

Since March last year, 16 ethnic Tibetans have set themselves on fire in protest at religious and cultural repression under Chinese rule.

In a joint letter to the Chinese government in November, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch called for the authorities to address the underlying causes of the protests.

In a statement released today by the US Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy and Human Rightrs and US Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues, Maria Otero, the United States Administration expressed grave concerns at the heightened tensions in Tibetan areas and urged Chinese authorities to exercise restraint as well as called to allow access to Tibetan areas of China for journalists, diplomats and other observers. The statement also called on the Chinese government to “resume substantive, results-oriented dialogue with the Dalai Lama or his representatives to address the underlying grievances of China’s Tibetan population.”

The complete text of Under Secretary Maria Otero’s statement as follow:

Statement By The Special Coordinator For Tibetan Issues Maria Otero

http://www.humanrights.gov/2012/01/24/statement-by-the-special-coordinator-for-tibetan-issues-maria-otero/

Washington, DC
Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy and Human Rights and U.S. Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues, Maria Otero

January 24, 2012

As United States Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues, I am gravely concerned by reports of violence and continuing heightened tensions in Tibetan areas of China, including reports of security forces in Sichuan province opening fire on protesters, killing some and injuring others.

These reports follow the self-immolation of four Tibetans earlier this month, bringing the number of reported self-immolations by Tibetans to 16—mostly monks and former monks, and two nuns—since March 2011.

Maria Otero, Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy and Human Rights and U.S. Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues

The U.S. Government consistently and directly has raised the issue of Tibetan self-immolations with the Chinese government. The U.S. Government repeatedly has urged the Chinese government to address the counterproductive policies in Tibetan areas that have created tensions and that threaten the distinct religious, cultural and linguistic identity of the Tibetan people.

As I have noted previously, these policies include dramatically expanded Chinese government controls on religious life and practice; ongoing “patriotic education” campaigns within monasteries that require monks to denounce the Dalai Lama; the permanent placement of Chinese officials in monasteries; increasingly intensive surveillance, arbitrary detentions and disappearances of Tibetans; and restrictions on and imprisonment of some families and friends of self-immolators. Over the last year, Chinese government security and judicial officials also have detained and imprisoned Tibetan writers, artists, intellectuals, and cultural advocates who criticized Chinese government policies.

We call on the Chinese government to safeguard the universal human rights of all of China’s citizens. We urge Chinese security forces to exercise restraint, and we renew our call to allow access to Tibetan areas of China for journalists, diplomats and other observers. We call on the Chinese government to resume substantive, results-oriented dialogue with the Dalai Lama or his representatives to address the underlying grievances of China’s Tibetan population.