A Cautionary Side
Asked what life is like in Tibet today, a surprisingly large number of inhabitants reply that it is quite good. The 8000-odd pilgrims from Tibet who were at Bodh Gaya recently were rightly advised by the Dalai Lama to be careful about his tendency towards simplication. Of course, they mean that towards simplification. Of course they mean that life in Tibet now is better than before. Although this is an irrefutable fact, it should be stated quite umambiguously—especially to non-Tibetans. When Tibetans from Tibet say this kind of thing, they automatically assume that everyonw knows what went on there previously. Which is, of course not the case. Most newsmen, even in India, are absolutely ignorant about Tibet, and prefer to remain so. In fact, the only time they talk about Tibet is when some Western newspaper has prominently featured it. For instance, press coverage of the recent Kalachakra—which shortage of space does not allow us to reprint here—contained some amazing howlers, such as that it is the fifth Kalachakra given by the present Dalai Lama and that the first two were given in USA and Switzerland!
So when Tibetans from Tibet casually say that all is fine in Tibet, some one ignorant of the recent Tibetan history would simply take it at its face value. And then will come the pontificating editorials exhorting the Dalai Lama and all of use to return home where ‘everything is fine.’ Worse still, they will assure the entire world that the little misunderstanding in that little place has now been cleared.
Even if we suppose that things are unimaginable good in Tibet now, there remains the question of how long it will last. Father Ladany, who until a couple of years ago brought out the respected China News Analysis, opined in the Wall Street Journal recently that Ten Hsiaop’-ing is seriously worried about the tenability of the ‘liberalization policy’, and that there is a strong likelihood of the diehard Maoists taking over once he heads for the happy hunting grounds. One can well imagine what will happen to the ‘everything is all right in Tibet’ situation if and when that happens.
For this reason, it is most important to make sure that our feet are very, very clean indeed before we put them in our mouths.
Asked what life is like in Tibet today, a surprisingly large number of inhabitants reply that it is quite good. The 8000-odd pilgrims from Tibet who were at Bodh Gaya recently were rightly advised by the Dalai Lama to be careful about his tendency towards simplication. Of course, they mean that towards simplification. Of course they mean that life in Tibet now is better than before. Although this is an irrefutable fact, it should be stated quite umambiguously—especially to non-Tibetans. When Tibetans from Tibet say this kind of thing, they automatically assume that everyonw knows what went on there previously. Which is, of course not the case. Most newsmen, even in India, are absolutely ignorant about Tibet, and prefer to remain so. In fact, the only time they talk about Tibet is when some Western newspaper has prominently featured it. For instance, press coverage of the recent Kalachakra—which shortage of space does not allow us to reprint here—contained some amazing howlers, such as that it is the fifth Kalachakra given by the present Dalai Lama and that the first two were given in USA and Switzerland!
So when Tibetans from Tibet casually say that all is fine in Tibet, some one ignorant of the recent Tibetan history would simply take it at its face value. And then will come the pontificating editorials exhorting the Dalai Lama and all of use to return home where ‘everything is fine.’ Worse still, they will assure the entire world that the little misunderstanding in that little place has now been cleared.
Even if we suppose that things are unimaginable good in Tibet now, there remains the question of how long it will last. Father Ladany, who until a couple of years ago brought out the respected China News Analysis, opined in the Wall Street Journal recently that Ten Hsiaop’-ing is seriously worried about the tenability of the ‘liberalization policy’, and that there is a strong likelihood of the diehard Maoists taking over once he heads for the happy hunting grounds. One can well imagine what will happen to the ‘everything is all right in Tibet’ situation if and when that happens.
For this reason, it is most important to make sure that our feet are very, very clean indeed before we put them in our mouths.
posted by editorla at
9:05 PM
<< Home