 |
||
|
||
|
||
It would be naive to imagine that the Dalai Lama's appeal to the
Chinese authorities, exhorting them to desist from using brute
force to quell the Uighur revolt in Xinjiang, will cut much ice
with a wrathful Beijing bent of! retribution. If anything, the
Dalai Lama's call for restraint, coming as it does on the eve of
the 38th anniversary of the Tibetan National Uprising Day, may
strengthen Beijing's resolve not Only to crack down on the Uighur
Muslims, but also to tighten its grip on Tibet. Beijing has never
shown any sign of relaxing its political claim to this strategic
region on the Sino-Indian border, despite adverse international
opinion which derives from China's dubious human rights record in
Tibet. The ]Dalai Lama's continuing popularity and political
appeal have incensed the Chinese no end, and they have often
appeared confused as to how to respond to his pragmatic pacifism.
They have, of late, even sought to undermine his authority by
branding him a traitor, and forcing the Buddhist hierarchy to
pledge loyalty to Beijing. A couple of years ago, China had
rejected the Dalai Lama's choice of a young Tibetan as the next
incarnation of the Panchen Lama - the second most important teacher
in Tibetan Buddhism - and forced most lamas to back its own
candidate.
Successive Chinese governments, be they Imperial, Nationalist or
Communist, have Premised that Tibet is theirs by right since the
Chinese princess Wen-Chieng Kung-chu married King Gongtsen Grampo
in 641, and that Imperial advisors were appointed to the Tibetan
pontiffs from 1720. The Tibetans, however, have their own
watertight case for independence as they constitute a distinctive
ethnic, linguistic and religious group with, until the Chinese
invasion, well-defined territorial boundaries. The Tibetans have
suffered harsh repression ever since their homeland was occupied by
the People's Liberation Army in 1950, and today China continues to
dilute Tibetan culture by encouraging an influx of Han Chinese and
dismantling the Lhasa skyline brick by brick. As for the Dalai
Lama, Beijing's masters are probably aware that only he can give
them the legitimacy to rule Tibet. They must also be concerned
about younger Tibetans who faced with cultural extinction, seem to
be tiring of the Dalai Lama's persistent advocacy of non-violence
and are clamouring for complete independence, much as the Uighurs
in China's north-western Xinjiang province do.
|
||
|
||
|
||